No Ordinary Girl
by HappyEndings46
Summary: What is it like being an Origin? What's it like having Daemon and Katy as parents? Lexi can tell you all about it.
1. Prologue

**A/N: And here's the promised Lux FanFiction, or at least the start of it. I've read all 5 books of the original series, Oblivion, and Shadows. Loved them all. I love the first person POV-especially switching between Katy and Daemon, mature characters, and overall story. And Daemon and Katy are actually a strong, mature couple. They talk through things, see the flaws in each other and accept them, and don't lie or keep things from each other. Finally! The one thing I didn't care for in Lux was the language. Beyond that, though, it was definitely one of my favorite reads. So I, of course, had to write a FanFic for it 3. Oh, and you should listen to the song Superheroes by The Script. It totally fits Daemon and Katy!**

* * *

 **{Katy}**

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Daemon watches me, concern churning in his emerald eyes.

"Positive," I say with a smile, resting my hand over my stomach. Daemon follows the movement and a proud smile lands on his face.

"I can't believe," he says, wrapping his arms around me, holding me to him. His stubble tickles my neck as his breath warms my ear. "That we're going to be parents." I smile widely at him, still in awe myself. But this was why we were doing this: moving. We, like Dawson and Beth, had decided to find some land so that we could raise our child in peace. And so, you know, the world didn't find out Origins existed when they see a 2-year-old moving trees or something. I can't fight the grin stretching across my face again. A knock sounds on our door, signaling the arrival of the rest of the Black family, coming to help us move. Who needs a moving crew when you can move stuff telepathically? Daemon sighs and steps back from me, going to answer the door. Before he can open it, though, Dee rushes through. Daemon frowns.

"What's the point in knocking when you just rush through anyways?"

Dee grins, jumping on her toes. "Just to be polite." Daemon grumbles some more, but he's smiling. Archer carefully steps through the door next, glancing at Daemon.

 _Is he going to injure me?_ He asks me when he sees his jaw clench.

 _Nah. He just likes for people to have a healthy dose of respect for him._

I hear Archer's chuckle in my head. Dawson steps through the door, wrapping Daemon in a hug. Beth carries Ashley against her hip, wrapping me in a side hug.

"Are you nervous for the baby?"

I shrug. "A little. I know I'd be a lot more so if Daemon weren't around. He's a huge help and, well, I know he's going to take as good care of our child as he does of me."

Beth smiles, then looks at Dawson, love in her eyes. "I know exactly what you mean."

* * *

 **{Daemon}**

"I never thought I'd see this," Dawson says with a smile. "My brother, who hated humans, is now married to one-er part human-and is going to be a father!"

I smile, warmth spreading through me as I hear that word again- "married." It's been 3 years since Kat and I were "officially" married, 4 ½ since we were wed in Vegas.

Dawson claps me on the shoulder. "And now you're moving into the country, like me. You know what they say," he says with a grin. "Imitation is the highest form of flattery."

"You wish," I say as I elbow him.

After Kat had done her final check of the house, making sure she hadn't left any books, she comes to stand by me in our now empty room.

"We're actually doing this," she says, sounding like she's a little dazed.

"Yeah, but I'm going to make this moving experience the best one you've ever had. Besides," I add with a sly grin. "I've helped you move before."

Her brows furrow, and I let out a low chuckle.

"The day you arrived in Virginia, you were carrying all of those boxes into your house. I didn't want you hurting yourself, so I may have lent a hand."

"So that's why they suddenly seemed so light," she laughs. "And here I thought I had just experienced some rapid muscle gain," she laughs again. "Wait," she says after a moment, casting another look at me. "Were you stalking me, even then?"

"It wasn't stalking it was just-"

"Keeping an eye on me, I know," she says with a roll of her eyes.

"It's rude to interrupt, Kitten," I chide. She turns her dancing gray eyes to mine and I instantly decide she's forgiven. "But, yes, when I returned from patrolling, I noticed a car had pulled into the house next to us, which had been deemed to remain empty. So I waited to see what kind of people the DOD had allowed to live by us. And must I say, I wasn't disappointed," I say with a wink. I chase the blush spreading across her face with my fingers, savoring her soft skin. "I really, _really_ wish we didn't have company outside our door right now, otherwise I would totally be kissing you right now," I say, my voice rough. "We could just send them home. They've helped enough."

Kat rolls her eyes again. "Yeah, they got our stuff outside the door and into our cars, but we have to _unload_ it at our new house."

"I can do that," I lower my forehead to hers, loving the way her breath catches. "And I'd make it look better, too."

Kat lets out a breathy giggle. "Don't I know it." I press a kiss to her lips despite myself, sighing against her mouth when her fingers tickle my hair at the nape of my neck. _Why oh why did we invite my family to help me move?_ Dee bursts through the door again.

"Ew, gross guys. Get a room."

"This _is_ our room," I growl. "And you still haven't seem to grasped the concept of knocking."

"I did knock; you just didn't hear. Too busy kissing each other silly." Kat blushes a deeper shade of red and bites her lip, drawing my attention back to her rosy, soft-

"You guys ready?" Archer peeks into the room, then frowns. He must've been peeking into my head, too.

"Sure," I grumble. Then I whisper into Kat's ear, "The sooner we get this over with, the sooner I have you to myself." She shivers and I bite back a groan; this is going to be such a long day.

* * *

 **{Katy}**

The moment I step out of the car, I suck in a breath of the fresh, country air. I let out a sigh as Daemon wraps an arm around me.

"It's perfect," I say as I look over the property that was now our own. General Eaton had stayed true to his word and the government had stayed away from our family.

"You know what I've always wanted?" Daemon murmurs into my ear, sending pleasant shivers down my back.

"What?"

He smiles shyly, which makes me even more curious as to what he's about to say; Daemon's hardly ever shy.

"You're going to laugh."

"I'm not."

I can tell he still doesn't believe me, but he finally says, "a farm."

I bite my lip to keep from laughing. His eyes narrow as he sees my expression.

"I told you you would laugh."

"Hey," I raise my hands in surrender. "I'm not laughing. And _if_ I were to, it would be because I never could've seen you as a farmer when I first saw you. And now, in some strange way, I can see it. I mean, you love the outdoors, don't like people-"

Daemon moves to interject at that last statement, but I continue.

"And love being shirtless." A slow grin stretches across his face,

"You know me too, well, Kitten. And one of the first animals I'm going to get on our farm is a cat," he muses. I roll my eyes, but I'm smiling. The rest of our group had invited themselves into our house, so they had- thankfully- not been watching us. Knowing Dee, though, she was probably watching from our window. The steps creak on our porch, which immediately remind me of home- my first home in Virginia. The bitter-sweet memories wash over me, filled with my mom. My throat starts to ache; she would've loved this.

"I know," Daemon says as he pulls me in a hug. I welcome his familiar scent as I clutch his shirt, bringing my face to his neck. I take deep breaths, fighting back the sudden tears. _Hormones,_ I tell myself. _It's the hormones._ Once I feel like I'm not about to burst into tears, Daemon and I walk inside our new house, hand in hand.

"What were you doing outside for so long?" Dee asks innocently. I laugh a little despite myself and Daemon's eyes brighten as he hears the sound. He leads me to our couch and pulls me down beside him. His hand moves up to my shoulder, massaging my neck. I lean my head back and sigh in relief; the muscles had been so tight lately. And Daemon gave out-of-this-world massages, which made since because he was, well, out-of-this-world.

"We're going to finish unloading your car," Dawson says over his shoulder as he walks out the door. I move to get up to help, but Daemon puts a hand on my thigh, stopping me.

"I'll do it," he says, his extraordinary eyes capturing mine. "You're carrying more important cargo." He places a hand over my stomach, and warmth spreads through me. I don't argue, because truth be told, I am a little tired, and his touch left me speechless anyways. So I smile and press a kiss to his lips, then settle back against the couch with my new book.

* * *

What feels like moments later, I'm being shaken awake.

"Hey Sleeping Beauty," Daemon says with a tender smile. "Company finally left."

"Good," I yawn. Daemon laughs as he settles down beside me. He picks up the book I'm reading.

"City of Bones?" His brows furrow as he takes in the full cover. "Should I be worried that you're reading books with bare-chested dudes on the front?"

I fight a blush as I snatch the book back.

"It's actually a very good book. It's about Nephilim, and werewolves, and vampires, and-"

"Aliens?"

"No," I laugh. "Well, I guess it depends on what you count as aliens. There're demons, which are really just monsters, and they aren't exactly from this earth…"

"Are they as attractive as me?"

"Not the demons. Jace might be, though."

"I doubt that," he scoffs.

I laugh. "That sounds like something he'd say."

"Okay, I'm done with this conversation."

"You sound jealous."

"Of a fictional character? Not possible. Besides, I know how to get your attention back on me," he says with a dangerous grin.

"Is that so?" I ask breathily.

"It is," he murmurs as he moves closer to me. I tilt my head back to see him, and his lips meet mine. I breath a sigh out against his mouth as his warm lips coast over mine. He shudders against me as I deepen the kiss, and I press closer to him. His hands grip my hips, then slip under my shirt, never breaking contact with my lips. His fingers trail over my stomach, then stop as they reach the baby bump. Daemon pulls back, breathing heavily; his eyes are a dark, forest green.

"I don't want to excite you too much," he smirks. "Might harm the baby."

"Whatever," I say with a roll of my eyes, then pull him back to me. He comes readily, his arms braced on either side of my body. His hair falls forward, tickling my nose. Then I did the most romantic thing possible: I sneeze, right in his face. Luckily, he moved out of the way just in time, what with his alien reflexes and all.

"Sorry," I mutter, turning my head into the cushion. Daemon laughs as he turns my face back to him.

"Have I told you recently how much I love you?"

"Just a little bit ago," I say as I trail my fingers over his chest. "But I wouldn't mind hearing it again." He chuckles deeply, sending shivers down my back.

"Maybe I should show, not tell."

"Maybe you should," I whisper.

So he did, in every kiss, in every touch, in every word whispered against my mouth.

* * *

 **{Daemon}**

The next morning, I stretch an arm out and reach for Kat. My hand finds empty air, and I sit up quickly. My heart starts to race, and I all but run downstairs. As I'm reaching for my phone to call Dawson for a search party, I spot Kat out the window. She's on her knees in the soil around the house, her face grim with determination. I breath out a sigh of relief. Wasn't really sure what I thought had happened to her. Whenever I can't immediately find her, the rational part of my brain shuts off. I'm still getting used to the fact that our lives aren't constantly in danger. I step out into the sunshine, closing my eyes as the sun warms my skin. I breath in the smell of pine; I could get used to waking up to this. Kat glances up at me, and her gaze travels from my face, then a little lower…and stays there.

"I see you still haven't grasped the concept of wearing shirts," she says, blushing.

"I don't think you mind it," I say with a wink. "And there's no one out here except for you to see me, which was the whole point of coming out here in the first place." I kneel next to her, loving the way her breath catches as I lean close to her face.

"You've got a little something there," I murmur as I swipe a bit of soil from her cheek. Her eyes get a far-away look in them and I wave my hand in front of her face, bringing her back to the present.

"I don't like being ignored. What took your attention away from me? It better be good."

"I was just thinking about a situation that was actually very similar to this," she says as she gestures around her. "When I had just moved to Virginia- Dee and I were gardening and you came by to do…well, I'm still not entirely sure why you came over."

"I didn't really have a reason. All I knew was that I wanted to get closer to you."

"Well, you certainly did that," she says with a fierce blush. I smile smugly. Ah, yes. I did almost kiss her that day, against a tree, no less.

"Well," I say cheerfully. "I'm going to make this the best gardening experience you've ever had."

She rolls her eyes again, but she moves aside so I can reach the soil and plants.

"Where did you get these from?" I ask as I pick up a fern.

"Around," she says, gesturing to the forest and wildflowers surrounding us.

"That's my resourceful girl."

"Well, I'm definitely your girl."

"That you are. My two girls," I add as I tickle her stomach.

"How do you know it's a girl?" she asks with a frown.

"Just do." Kat looks like she's going to say something, then shakes her head with a smile.

"You know," she says with a sigh. "It's kind of a shame our baby's going to have those amethyst-colored eyes. I would love to see him or her get your eyes."

"It is a shame, isn't it," I say as I lean back on my elbows. She slaps at my chest.

"Ego, Daemon."

"You said it! I'm merely agreeing."

"Ugh," she laughs. "You're impossible."

* * *

 **A/N: I'm about to upload the next chapter (I wanted 2 chapters written to start this FF off with) and I'll write the 3rd chapter- well 2nd chapter on here, not counting the Prologue- soon. I have a 4 day weekend this weekend, so should have some time to write. Hopefully.**


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N: And from here on out, the story is told from Lexi's POV**

* * *

Being an Origin isn't all it's cracked up to be. I mean, you can read minds, which is helpful at times, but it takes the surprise out of everything. Like when Mom had tried to throw me a surprise birthday party for my 15th birthday. She had been trying so hard _not_ to think about it that all she thought about around me was my surprise party. So, obviously, by the time my party rolled around, it wasn't a surprise at all. And sometimes, what Mom and Dad think about each other is _gross._ Definitely not what their teenage daughter wanted to hear all of the time. But it does have its perks, too. I know exactly what someone else is thinking about me. I know when to avoid my parents if they're in a bad mood, and I know if my cousin, Ashley, is angry with me. Which is fairly often, since we're just about polar opposites. I'm a tom boy; don't get me wrong, I still take care of my appearance and all, but I couldn't care less about my nails, or my hair. And my ideal evening would be riding outside in the fresh air, then curling up with a good book in front of the fire place. Ashley is a total girly-girl; I'm not entirely sure where she gets it from, since both Uncle Dawson and Aunt Beth are both pretty low-key. But she's always wearing tight clothes, dresses, her hair is always perfectly styled, and her nails are perfectly filed and painted. What really drives me crazy about Ashley is that she treats the 4-year age gap like it's more than it is. She's constantly parenting me, and I already have 2 amazing ones. I still love her, though, even when she gets on my nerves. My younger cousins are a little bit more like me. Dee and Archer have 2 little girls and a son, who's a year younger than me. We were all curious to see if they would have a Luxen or Origin, since, to our knowledge, the two had never, uh, reproduced together before. Their children seem to be Luxens with a mix of some of the Origin traits. Like, Adam has amethyst eyes, Skye can read minds, and Nate is a wee bit stronger than the average Luxen. Dawson and Beth had three more children after Ashley; both parents had wanted a big family. Enter in Zoey, Lyla, and Jason, all of whom were easy-going and outdoorsy like their parents. I kind of felt bad for Ash, since she was the odd-one-out as far as interests and personality. Beth's little brother, Philip, would come visit sometimes as well, along with his wife and kids. Her parents rarely made an appearance, but I know they keep in touch.

* * *

"Lex, Honey, are you with me?" I'm snapped out of my daydream and I meet my mother's concerned eyes.

"Yeah, yeah," I mumble. "Fine, just a little tired."

"Well, you rode hard today."

"Yeah," I grin. My mare, Dove, was in heat again, so she was pretty hormonal. She had bucked, reared, and galloped all over the farm today. I had stayed on by sheer willpower, and my extra-human strength. Oh, I loved that horse.

"You wanna call it a day for school?"

"Sounds good to me." I smile wider. Mom was always very flexible with home-schooling, since I learned so quickly and because she just had that kind of personality. Besides, I was smarter than the average human by the time I reached age 6. Homeschooling now was more of a routine and a way to fill up the day. And the government required me to have an education, but it made us feel more human anyways, so none of us fought it.

"So," Dad steps behind mom. "Since you're done with school and the day's still young, how about a family ride? It's been awhile since we've done that."

"Sounds perfect," Mom says as she leans her head back, kissing Dad.

"Ew," I say just to annoy them. Mom makes a face at me, and I make a face back.

"Look at you two," Dad laughs. "My two little girls."

"I'm not so little anymore," I point out. "I'm almost 16." Dad's face grows pained.

"How time flies. At least I've aged well," he says with a wink at Mom. She rolls her eyes at him, but both of them had aged well, from what I'd seen of the outside world. Both of them looked like they had in their wedding picture. Part of the Alien DNA, I guess.

"Come on, Slowpokes," Dad calls over his shoulder as he rushes outside. I'm after him in less than a second, catching up to him in no time. He cuts me off as we round the turn to the barn. _Oh, it's on._ I push myself harder, determined to beat him; I know I'm more powerful than him, being an Origin and all. I look up again and I groan. Dad waits for me, a smug smile on his face.

"Beat you," he says as he steps forward and ruffles my hair. Mom walks out from behind him, grinning.

"Ah, but I beat _you_." Dad spins around, surprised.

"How- Where."

"What's wrong, cat got your tongue?" Mom winks as she bumps him with her hip.

"Yes," he smirks. "Kat can most definitely have my-"

"Stop!" I squeal. "Please don't finish that. Your daughter's over here! Hello!" I wave my arms.

"Hey," Dad frowns. "You realize if your mom and I didn't love each other as much as we did, you never would've been made." _Don't read his thoughts,_ I tell myself. _Don't read his thoughts._ I can only imagine what kinds of things he was thinking right now, and one glance at Mom tells me she's thinking very similar things. _Don't do it. Don't do it._ I think about how much I'd love to eat chocolate right about now, and that seems fix that problem.

"Okay," I say brushing past them to Dove's stall. "Let's ride."

* * *

The crisp evening air burns my chest as I breathe it in. We canter across the ridge, the long grass blowing in the slight breeze. The remaining warmth of the sun warms my face and reddens Dove's dun coat; summer evening rides are my favorite. Dad pulls his horse down to a walk, and Mom and I do the same. I glance over at Mom, seeing her watching Dad with adoring eyes. _I wonder what she's thinking…_ I realize my mistake as soon as the familiar sensation washes over me.

 _Daemon looks as good on a horse as he does doing anything. He'd look even better if he decided to go shirtless-_

I stop myself from further intruding on her thoughts. Didn't want to follow that train of thought, into "Daemon is so Hot-ville". One look at Dad tells me to steer clear of his thoughts, too. I sigh mentally; not reading minds was so exhausting sometimes.

* * *

It takes me a half hour to brush out my hair the following morning. I had just left it in a ponytail all day yesterday, and the wind definitely left its mark. I wince as I pull the brush through my dark waves. Once I'm done, I study my reflection. My hair falls about mid-waist; I have my father's high cheekbones and my mom's shaped lips. The classic-Origin amethyst eyes stare back at me. I tilt my head; I suppose I'm pretty. I've never been told otherwise. I sigh as I quickly braid my hair out of my eyes, then head downstairs. The bacon smell fills the kitchen, like it does every morning. Dad never tires of bacon, so we have it every single morning.

"Morning, Sunshine," Dad calls from the stove. He could fry the bacon by hand, but he claims it tastes better if it's made on the griddle. Not that I'm complaining; I love bacon, and so does Mom, so we're one happy bacon-loving family. "How is my Lux this morning?" I roll my eyes at his nickname for me. Most wouldn't understand the analogy between the nickname and his people. If a human ever hears Dad call me that, he just says it's because it's Latin for "light", and I'm another one of the lights in his world. It sounds pretty lame, but it's believable.

"Good, I say as I fill a mug with coffee.

"Mom sits at the table, reading her latest book, chewing on a piece of bacon thoughtfully.

"Hey, honey," she looks up as I take a seat beside her. "Sleep well?" I nod, wrapping my hands around my warm mug. The silence gets to me as I finish my mug of coffee.

"Well, this has been fun," I say as I stand up again. "But I'm going out for a ride."

"You should eat something before you go." Mom looks up from her book. "Breakfast is the-"

"Most important meal of the day. I know," I grin and grab a piece of bacon. "I'll have more when I come back," I call over my shoulder. I saddle Dove up and ride out, taking one of the country roads around our property. She's a lot calmer today than she was yesterday, so I give her some loose rein. She trots along happily, her tail swishing behind her. I move her into a canter and sigh as she doesn't buck or gallop. We ride around a bend in the road, nearly running into some guy on a motorcycle. He veers off to the side of the road, his motorcycle falling on top of him.

"Sorry!" I turn Dove around and trot over to him, wincing as I see him pushing his bike off of him. "Are you okay?" I step off Dove and help him up.

"Yeah," he grumbles as he brushes pebbles off of his jeans. Then he raises his eyes and stares at me, frozen. _Why is he staring at me like that?_ I hadn't meant to peek into his thoughts, but the next thing I know I'm hearing them clear as day.

 _That has got to be the prettiest girl I've ever seen. Look at those eyes! And she's not one of those prissy girls all around school. And she's staring back at me! Act cool, confident. Girls like that kind of thing._

I bite back a laugh as I see his chest puff out. Since he already thought I was checking him out, I figured I might as well do it for real. Blonde curls fall into his dark blue eyes. I guess he's handsome. Tan skin, chiseled jaw...okay, he's definitely handsome. And he likes the outdoors- another plus.

"Hi," I say reaching out a hand. He stares at it, dumbfounded. "I didn't knock out some brain cells when I ran you over with my horse, did I?" I laugh.

"Uh, no," he says blushing. "Sorry." He grabs my outstretched hand.

 _Way to go, man. Great first impression- struck stupid._

His thoughts wash over me once again. I wince inwardly; I hadn't meant to embarrass him.

"I'm Lexi. Most people just call me Lex, though." _Or Lux,_ I add in my head. I offer him a smile.

 _That name fits her. Not too girly, but still pretty._

I feel warmth travel through me; he thought my name was pretty. I hardly ever meet guys from the "outside world", since we're out in the middle of nowhere, and if there are any around, Dad scares them away. He's very protective of "his only daughter and doesn't want her getting hurt." Yet here's a human boy- a handsome boy- standing right in front of me.

"I'm Neal," he smiles at me, and I smile back.

* * *

 **A/N: Will try to post the next chapter in the next couple of days. I'd love to hear what you guys think of it so far!**


	3. Chapter 2

"So," I say, dragging my foot in the dirt. "Would you like to come back to my house with me? It's just a half mile or so from here. We have food," I say with a smile.

"Uh- yeah! I'd love to go."

 _Keep calm, man. It's not like she's asking you out or anything._

"Great! I'll lead the way if you just keep a little bit of space of between Dove and your motorcycle. It wouldn't be good for either of us if she spooks." Neal nods, then steps onto his cycle. As I mount Dove, I begin to wonder if it was the best idea to invite Neal over to my house. I mean, people knew about the Luxen and all now, but that didn't mean they could still be dangerous. We were still pretty sure no one knew about Origins. And some humans still blamed the all Luxen for the war, which was so unfair. Many pitched in to fight off the invading Luxen, namely Mom and Dad.

"Are we going right now, or…" Neal looks at me hesitantly and I realize I had just been sitting on Dove, thinking. In answer, I press my heels to her sides and she moves forward. _It'll be fine,_ I reason with myself. _There's no immediate reason for Dad to blow Neal into next year. Hopefully._

* * *

"You can stick your bike over there," I motion to the side of the barn as I put Dove away. "My house is this way," I call over my shoulder as I walk up our dirt drive. Neal follows me, keeping a polite distance between us. Dad would like that. As I'm about to open the door, I realize how dangerous it would be for me to show up with a human unannounced. I step in through the door and send a message to Mom and Dad.

 _Don't freak out, okay. I nearly ran this guy over with Dove, and I wanted to bring him back here to make sure he's all good._

I realize it's a lame excuse and Dad's thinking the same thing.

 _Please,_ I add. _He seems like a good guy._ By the time I send that last part to them, Neal and I are stepping into the kitchen.

 _Seems and are are two different things,_ Dad thinks.

 _I hope Daemon doesn't scare him away, for Lexi's sake,_ Mom's thinking. Dad stands slowly, his eyes studying Neal critically. He looks like he's a trapped animal, and my heart goes out to him.

 _Dad!_

He glances at me, still tense but not as vicious-looking. It's a start.

 _I just don't want you getting hurt._

 _I understand where you're coming from. But he seems like a good guy. The moment he gets suspicious or anything, he's out of here. Deal?_

A picture of a tan guy with bronze hair forms in Dad's head, along with a name: Blake. I can feel his revulsion and distrust.

 _If he starts to be the least bit suspicious, he'll be gone, Dad. I'll trust your call. Will you trust mine?_

Dad sighs, then sticks out a hand.

"I'm Daemon, Lexi's dad. And this is my lovely wife, Katy." Dad wraps an arm around Mom's shoulders and I let out a breath of air.

"Really?" Neal's brows furrow. "But you're so young."

Dad smiles tightly. "We take good care of ourselves."

"So," I position myself between them and quickly change the topic. "Where do you live, Neal?"

"Oh, it's in town- if you could call it that. 'Bout 5 miles that way." He points towards the hills.

"Well, that's a clear description," Dad smirks.

 _Dad!_

 _Right, I'm behaving._ He holds his hands up in mock surrender.

Amity, our cat, trots into the kitchen. I take the chance to ease the situation.

"Neal, meet Amity," I say, scooping her up.

"Funny story, there," Dad says, looking devilishly at Mom, who blushes. "My nickname for Lex's mom had always been Kat or Kitten. So, first thing I told her when we moved here was that we were going to get our very own cat. And we obviously did," he looks affectionately at Amity.

"Ah, cool," Neal says, rubbing the back of his neck. He's obviously uncomfortable, but that tends to happen when a human walks into a home filled with aliens. _Sorry._

Neal blinks, then loos at me, confused. _Shoot._ I had accidentally spoken that into his mind. I had a very good hold on my abilities, but sometimes, when I was distracted, they would slip a little. I pretend that hadn't happened and hope he just thinks he's going crazy.

"Well," I say as I walk back towards the door. "I'm going to let you and mom have some alone time, and I'll show Neal around the farm."

"Alone? You need a chaperone."

"Dad," I groan, blushing furiously. He made it sound like we were a love-struck couple about to embark on a romantic date. Yeah, 'cause this was _so_ romantic. And we weren't even together…yet. I feel butterflies ignite in my stomach at the thought. I had always wanted love like my parent's had. _Maybe this is my chance._ I look back over at Neal, who's petting Amity.

"They won't be alone, honey," Mom wraps her hand around his arm, and I see his face soften. "They'll have Ams."

Dad rolls his eyes. "A cat as a chaperone?"

"Well, she's been around longer than Lex-"

"By 5 months!" I point out.

Mom shoots me a look. "They'll be fine. They'll stay within eyesight, right?"

"Yup. Definitely. Bye!" I spin around and drag Neal out the door.

"Well, your parents seem cool," he says as we take the path around the hills.

"Yeah, I love 'em, but my dad can be a bit overprotective sometimes."

"It shows that he cares about you," Neal turns to me, his eyes serious. He glances down as he says, "I wish my parents were like that." I wait for him to continue. "They try the best they can, but they're so busy caring for my other siblings. They…are difficult, and since I'm the 'easy' kid in the family, they kind of just let me be. I have freedom, which is nice, but I'm practically ignored most of the time while they devote their time to my other siblings. I'm not complaining or anything, but it gets old being ignored at home all the time."

"Is that why you like riding your motorcycle?"

"Yeah," he smiles. "I love being away and having a place to clear my thoughts. And I love the country air," he sucks in a deep breath. "I may live in a small town, but it still has that city smell."

"I know how you feel. I mean, I obviously don't live in a city, but I love the freedom I have on Dove. And I love the horse smell." I blush; normal girls wouldn't say they love the smell of horse.

"I respect that," he says, glancing at me. "I don't like a girl that has to stay perfectly clean and smell like roses all the time." Wow. That just earned him some mega bonus points.

"So," I say as I swing myself up onto the fence. "What do you like to do for fun, besides riding your motorcycle?" As we talk, I realize we have some things in common. Both of us were fans of the action-type shows, like Arrow, Flash, even Shield. We debated about which of the Jurassic Parks were the best. I thought Jurassic World, he thought the original. We even talked about the differences between riding horse and riding motorcycle. Hours fly by, and he has to head home. As I walk back into the house, Mom pounces on me with a million questions:

"Do you like him? What does he like? Does he have a girlfriend?"

"Mom, mom," I laugh. "We just talked about TV shows, and movies, and being outdoors. Nothing exciting."

"Well, I'm glad you had fun, Lux." Dad wraps me in a hug, and I grin as I hug him back. He kisses the top of my head and ruffles my hair. "I love you, you know that, right?"

"I know, Dad. Love you too, even if you are a bit overprotective."

"Can't help it; it's in my DNA."

I hear a little sniffle and look over at Mom.

"Sorry," she whispers. "This is just so touching. I love my little family." I laugh and give her a hug, too, then head upstairs, to my room. I hear Mom and Dad talking when they think I'm out of earshot.

"Our little girl's growing up," Mom says.

"Yes she is. But I still have my Kitten." Mom laughs, then I don't hear anything and I know for a fact I do not want to walk into the kitchen for a while. And I never did get breakfast.

* * *

A/N: Next chapter should be up shortly.


	4. Chapter 3

A/N: Wow so I discovered that quite a few people are actually reading my writing. And they're from all over the world! This brought tears to my eyes. I don't even know why, but it totally caught me off guard. I had no idea so many people cared enough to read what I wrote. And from all over the world! This is so crazy! I hope you guys know how much I appreciate this. Wow. I'm going to go and blame the tears on my cold ;)

* * *

I pull my book off of my nightstand as I fling myself onto my bed. I slide my bookmark out and try to lose myself in my book, which I usually do easily. But I find myself staring off into space, thinking of a certain blonde-haired, blue-eyed boy. I sit up suddenly. I didn't know precisely where he lived, and we hadn't exchanged numbers or any way to contact the other. Which meant-

I groan. We may never see each other again. I mentally slap myself; I would not work myself up about nothing. I was overreacting, by a lot. But the more I try to force myself to read, the more antsy I got. So I sigh and slowly creep down the stairs, listening for noises in the kitchen. I still couldn't make anything out, so I decide to play it safe and just wait until I saw one of my parents. I really, _really_ did not want to walk in on them making out. Again. It happened so many times I would've thought I'd have been scarred by now. Maybe I was already, but I just didn't know it. I'd probably wake up with nightmares as an old lady. I smile at the thought.

"What're you doing, little lady?" I shriek and spin around, hitting a hard chest.

"Dad!" I gasp, placing a hand over my fluttering heart. "I'm pretty sure you would've given me a heart attack if I had been human." He laughs, wrapping an arm around me.

"I couldn't help it. I walked right by you and you didn't even notice. And you know how I feel about being ignored," he grins at me. "What were you so lost in thought about anyway? Nelson?"

"Daemon, don't start that again," Mom groans from the living room.

"Start what?" He asks innocently. She raises her eyebrows at him and Dad smirks.

"The name thing." She looks at him pointedly. He bats his eyelashes innocently and Mom breaks into a smile. Dad's grin turns wicked, then he's gone. I blink. There goes Mom. I shake my head; I must be going insane.

"Mom? Dad?" I pause as I wait for a response, then sigh. I probably don't want to know where Dad took Mom to and what they were doing. Weren't they just making out a short while ago? Seriously. They were worse than 2 love-struck teenagers. Well…maybe they were like that as teenagers or worse. I shudder at the thought.

* * *

Since it seemed I had the house to myself, I decide to capitalize on it. I actually loved being home alone; I could do whatever I wanted, namely eat as much chocolate as I wanted. Or watch Netflix. Or throw a party. I laugh. _Yeah, right._ Whenever I was home alone I normally read a book and cleaned up the house. I just liked things tidy and although I liked watching some shows, I tended to pace myself on my amount of screen-time. Lame, I know, but it's just how I've always been. I know my parents are grateful for it; they're always telling me what an easy teenager I am. I'm not sure whether that should make me happy or not. And, in all honesty, I'd probably choose a book over TV anyway. The shows just had so much drama, since they had to keep the audience interested. With books…well, it just wasn't so much that way. And I had a pretty good imagination, so the fictional boys in my head normally ended up looking insanely hot- better than any actor. Just thinking about them made me giddy. And my parents didn't think I was boy crazy. I totally was…the boys just weren't real. I shake my head at myself. I was such a nerd. But, now I've actually found a _real_ boy. Ashley would have a heart attack. Now, if only I could figure out a way to see him again…

* * *

Days pass with still no sign of Neal. I had ridden out every morning at the same time, same spot, and every time I hoped so much to see him it was embarrassing. I was almost to the point of riding into the nearest town and knocking on every door until I found Neal. But I wouldn't even be sure if it was the right town. I sigh with frustration as I tighten Dove's girth, about to go on yet another morning ride. I mount and jog Dove over the first hill, already trying to control my hope. I would just be disappointed again. Dove jerks to a stop, throwing me off-balance.

"What, girl?" I ask her as I pat her neck soothingly. Sometimes a coyote or some other wild animal would track her on a ride. I would never let one harm her, but they still spooked her sometimes. Understandable; she was a prey animal. Horses got scared of plastic bags, for goodness' sake! Dove snorts and pricks her ears, watching the hill in front of us intently. She paws the ground, becoming fidgety from standing still. I roll my eyes at her.

"You were the one who stopped." I push my calves into her sides and she throws a buck before taking off. "You're hyper this morning, aren't ya," I laugh.

"Wouldn't have been so funny if you had fallen off," a voice says directly to our left. Dove really does spook, then, shying to the right and galloping into the woods. I wiggle the reins to try and break her out her mindless run. She flicks an ear back but keeps running. I slowly pull her into a large circle, then make it smaller and smaller until she has to slow down.

"You're okay, girl," I croon. Her sides are heaving and I feel a flash of anger over the idiot who spooked her. I walk her back to the path and gasp in surprise. Neal was standing there, looking wretched.

 _Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid. How could you have just called out like that? She loves that horse. Something could've happened to it, or her._

I feel a flash of grief from him at that thought. Wow. He actually cared for me. I smile a little despite myself.

"It's okay," I say once I reach him. "You didn't know better. I know you didn't mean to spook her." Neal still watches me with sorrowful eyes, then looks away.

"Well, if you'll forgive me-"

"Already have."

He smiles gratefully at me. "Thanks for that, but I didn't finish."

I blush a little. "Sorry."

"I was going to say, that if you'd forgive me, I would like to go out with you. Like, on an actual date."

I smile widely. "I'd love to."

"Great," Neal smiles with relief. "I want your dad to know that I'm not just fooling around with you."

 _Good job,_ he mentally chides himself. _You still just met her and you're making it sound like you're in a serious relationship already. Though I'd love to be._

His longing washes over me and I sigh a little. I always wanted a guy to feel this way about me.

"Well, um, how do you plan to contact me for the date?" I ask him.

"Oh." He blushes. "I hadn't thought that far yet. I didn't actually think you'd say yes."

 _Way to sound desperate. Why are you so stupid around her?!_

I laugh a little. "Well, how about I give you my number?"

Neal smiles like he'd just won the Nobel Peace Prize.

"Do you have something for me to write it on?" I coax, grinning; I can't believe I have this effect on him. His blush deepens and he pulls out his phone, handing it to me. I put Dove's reins in one hand and type my number into his phone with the other.

"Here you go," I say as I hand it back to him. I look around and frown. "How did you get here? I don't see your motorcycle."

"I stashed it a way back," he says, pointing behind him. "Didn't want a repeat of last time."

"Oh. Right." It was my turn to blush.

 _She's so cute when she blushes. And_ _I_ _made her blush. Unbelievable!_

As his thoughts once again wash over me, I can't help but wonder why I always read his thoughts. I never purposefully try to, they just always come to me. Uncle Archer always told me that some people's thoughts were broadcasted more than others.

"Your mother being one of them," he had said wryly. Then he had muttered something about dancing naked babies. I had been too afraid to ask him what he meant by that.

"Well," Neal says, snapping me out of my thoughts. "When are you free?"

"It's summer," I laugh. "I'm always free."

"Oh," he says with an embarrassed laugh. "Right." I mentally chide myself again. Why did I keep embarrassing him?

"Well, how about tomorrow night?"

"Sounds perfect." _That'll give me some time to calm Dad down._

"Great. I'll see you then," Neal turns to leave.

"Wait," I call out. He looks back at me expectantly. "Would you…Would you mind texting me or calling me before then? I just…" I sigh, then figure I might as well spew the rest out. "I kind of miss you. Crazy, I know. But I really like you and I think I might go out of my mind until tomorrow." I cringe as the words leave my mouth. Wow. How about that for clingy and boy-crazy? My stomach drops as Neal doesn't respond and I turn Dove around, blinking back tears. I probably just ruined it with him. And when did I get so darn emotional?

"Hey!" Neal calls out. I stop Dove and close my eyes as I wait for him to finish. I hear footsteps crunch on the path and I open my eyes. He's standing right in front of me, his blue eyes fixed on me. It steals my breath as our gazes' lock. He doesn't look away, and neither do I. His joy and hopefulness wash over me and I sag with relief.

"I would love to do that," he says with a smile. I know that he's telling the truth, because his feelings wash over me again. It's all I can do to not pump my fists in the air. I somehow manage to contain myself and smile widely at him.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Lexi." He once again turns to go, and I once again stop him.

"Neal," I call out. He stops with a huge smile that matches mine. "I'm really looking forward to it."

"Me, too."

* * *

A/N: Guys, I'm having so much fun writing this. This is probably my favorite chapter so far. And it doesn't even feel like I'm writing it. More like I'm reading a book myself, which is weird. Anyways, I have the day off of school tomorrow, so I'll try to upload another chapter! :) Oh, and Happy Valentine's Day! 3 Love my fictional couples :) Wessa, Clace, and Daemon & Katy are probably my top 3...oh and Clawen, too! Ugh I love them all too much. What're your top couples?


	5. Chapter 4

A/N: Well, sorry for the wait on the update. I've been pretty busy at school and the stables, but when I do have free time, I read. I finished The Significance Series as well as The Lunar Chronicles. Both were absolutely amazing, and I'm going to start a FanFic for the Lunar Chronicles soon. And the first book in The Dark Artifices, Lady Midnight, by Cassandra Clare comes out today 3 So be thankful I wrote this before I started reading that, otherwise it would be another couple days before an update...at least :)

* * *

"You're definitely not wearing that," Dad says from my doorway, frowning. I look at my reflection in the full-body mirror. An emerald green dress swishes around my knees as I spin a little.

"What's wrong with it?"

"Well, your skin's showing."

"Dad," I laugh. "It's not like I can just wrap myself up with _every possible_ article of clothing to cover every single inch of skin."

 _That's not a bad idea,_ Dad thinks. I roll my eyes at him and turn back to the mirror. It's a strapless dress, but still modest.

"Lexi," gasps Mom. When did she show up?

"Was that a good gasp or a bad one?" I tease.

"You look so beautiful," Mom still has a hand covering her mouth. She slowly walks over to me, brushing a lock of my hair away from my face.

"Don't encourage her," Dad scowls.

"Hey," Mom points at him. "I wore a whole lot less clothing than that on our first date. As did you," she says wryly. "So you're in no place to judge." Mom sees my horrified look and laughs. "We went swimming. Your dad took me to a private lake when I first moved to Virginia," she explains, turning love-struck eyes to Dad. He has a similar look on his face and snags an arm around her waist.

"I wasn't aware that was our first date."

Mom rolls her eyes and bumps him with her hip. "Remember how thrilled my mom was? You'd think she was the one going out with you." Mom's gaze turns a little nostalgic.

"It's part of my charm," Dad claims.

"Hey, if you guys are gonna flirt, you can at least get out of my room," I say.

Mom and Dad laugh, but at least they leave my room. I study the mirror once more, deciding the stick with the emerald dress. I put a little makeup on in the bathroom, then deem myself ready for my first date. I feel a flutter of nerves at the though. Neal and I had texted until late last night, our conversations ranging from TV shows vs books to solving world problems. I hadn't had much of a chance to be on my phone today, since I had some farm work I needed to get done before my date. I strike on last pose in the mirror, laughing at myself, before I head downstairs.

Neal had told me last night that he would pick me up at my house around 6. I didn't even know he had a car…maybe he was going to borrow one from his parents? I discover that I still have a good 20 minutes before Neal was supposed to come, so I grab my book and settle on the couch, careful not to wrinkle my dress. It felt like I had just settled down when the doorbell rang. Surprised the time had flown so quickly, I glance at the clock on my way over to the door. 5:45. Ah, that would explain it. All of 5 minutes had passed since I'd sat down. I cringe inwardly as I spot that Dad had beat me to the door. It appears that he's grilling Neal and giving him the classic "harm my daughter and I'll make you sorry you were over born" speech.

"Don't worry, sir, I would never harm Lexi," Neal's saying seriously. He spots my behind Dad and his eyes widen, his jaw slackening. Dad follows his gaze and scowls. He steps in front of me, forcing Neal's eyes back to him and away from me.

"Dad," I say to his back. "It's fine. I can take care of myself, and it's not like you can hide me forever."

 _I can try._

 _We've been through this. C'mon, I'll be fine. Look, I even have my phone on me. I'll. Be. Fine._

I step out from behind him, smiling at Neal.

"Ready?"

 _Am I ever._ Neal's blue eyes meet mine, then he opens the door for me.

 _See, he's even a gentleman,_ I smirk at Dad. He shakes his head a little, as if saying that there was no hope for me. I step carefully out into the night air, smiling up at the twinkling stars.

* * *

A/N: Sorry for a short chapter, but the next one will be longer and more entertaining. So all of my teachers decided that now was the time to pile up all these projects right before spring break, so I'm going to be very busy for a while. No promises on when I can update again, but I can definitely write during spring break.


	6. Chapter 5

**A/N: I had to stay up in my room and monitor my birds (I'm breeding them so I wanted to keep an eye on their behavior) so that gave me opportunity to write. Hope you enjoy this chapter! I think it's the longest one yet!**

* * *

"So," I ask as I take Neal's offered arm. "Where are we going?"

"It's a surprise," he says mischievously.

"Oh?" I ask, enjoying this other side of him.

"Yup!"

We walk for a few moments in silence, until I can't bear it anymore.

"Will you at least give me a clue?"

"Maybe if you beg for it."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Neal pulls me to an abrupt stop and leans in a little, his breath caressing my face. My breathing stutters to a halt.

"Whatever you want it to mean." His voice is deep and I shiver.

I want to smack his smug grin off of his face. If I could move that is, which I can't with his dark blue eyes holding me frozen in place. His eyes drop down to my lips then dart back up to my face. He leans even closer and I close my eyes, waiting. When nothing happens I open them again and see his face inches from mine. We stay like this for several moments until he takes a step back and the breath I hadn't realized I was holding whooshed out of my lungs. _Why didn't he kiss me?_ I can't help but wonder as he offers me his arm again as we walk. Of course, I could peek into his mind but I want to give him his privacy and, if I were honest with myself, I was worried with what I would find. _C'mon, Lex,_ I tell myself. _Don't be one of those girls, freaking out at everything._ I take a deep breath, straightening my shoulders.

"What are you doing?" Neal is watching me curiously, his brow furrowed.

"Oh, uh, nothing." I can tell he wants to ask me more so I quickly change the topic.

"So, how are we getting to where we're going?"

"Huh?"

"Well, you won't tell me where we're going for our date, but can you at least tell me how we're going to get there?"

Neal still looks confused. I huff out a breath.

"What's our mode of transportation?"

"Ohhh. Well, I figured your parents wouldn't be thrilled if I took you out on my motorcycle," I nod agreement, "so I thought I'd take my car."

"You have a car?"

"Don't sound so surprised," he laughs. "And I have a driver's license too, before you ask."

I blush; the question had been on the tip of my tongue.

"So where is this car?"

"Right here," he says as he steps up to a large vehicle. I blush as I realize I had been so caught up in Neal that I hadn't been aware of our surroundings at all. I study the vehicle and realize that it's a green Expedition. _At least it's not black,_ I muse. My dad would have an aneurysm if he thought I was driving to a date in a black Expedition. It stirred up some bad memories of the D.O.D.

"Is there something wrong?" Neal asks anxiously.

"No, I'm fine, I was just thinking about something."

"As long as you're sure," he says as he comes around to open the passenger side door for me.

"I'm sure," I laugh as I climb in. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe you wanted to go on a date with me so badly that you'd ignore it if you felt sick or something."

"Psht," I scoff. "You sound like my dad."

"Is that a good thing?"

"Just shut up and drive," I tease.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Oh, you did _not_ just call me that."

"Yes, ma'am I do believe I did. Isn't that the proper way to address a fine farm girl such as yourself?"

"Um, no." I ignore my brain screaming at me, _he called you fine!_ And say, "you've been watching too many movies."

"Lexi, you wound me," he says as he places a hand over his heart. "There's no such thing as watching too many movies." I laugh as we pull out of my drive and off to who-knows-where.

"Close your eyes," Neal tells me as he parks his car by a gas station.

"Um, Neal, I don't know how many dates you've gone on but surely you would know not to take a girl out to a gas station on a first date."

"And how many dates have you gone on, exactly?"

"Not the point."

"Relax, cowgirl." He shushes me by placing his finger on my lips as I protest. "I'm not taking you here; I'm not that stupid. Where I _am_ taking you is within walking distance, and I'd appreciate it if you would close your eyes so I can surprise you."

"And how am I supposed to walk if my eyes are closed?"

"You're a smart girl, I bet you can figure it out."

"My dad will skin you if I trip and injure myself."

"I can carry you if you want."

"Uh, what," I sputter.

"I'm here to help."

"Yeah, I bet you are," I mutter as I step out of the vehicle and into the crisp night air. Neal closes the door behind me and watches me expectantly. I huff out a breath but close my eyes.

"Happy?"

My breathing stalls as he whispers right into my ear, "unbelievably so."

"Um," I clear my throat. "I don't know where I'm walking to."  
I hear his chuckle as he grabs my hand, tugging me forward. I walk hesitantly, not wanting to trip and embarrass myself.

"You know," I grumble. "You aren't helping much."

"Well you objected to me carrying you so what do you want me to do?"

"You make me sound so unreasonable," I mutter to myself. Then, louder, so he can hear, I say, "surely you can figure out another way to help."

"Well, I can't ignore a damsel's cry in distress, now can I," he says right behind me, his breath warm on my neck. He gently wraps both of his arms around me and guides me forward. Now I have trouble walking for a whole new reason: his arms around me and his hard chest against my back make it difficult to even stand, much less walk. Tall grass swishes around my bare legs as we leave the path and walk through what I can only guess is a meadow. I wrack my brain trying to figure out where Neal was taking me. I mean, it's a small town so there aren't all that many places around here that I don't know about.

"Almost there," Neal murmurs. I don't know if I should feel relieved or disappointed. "Alright," he says as he steps back from me. I suddenly feel very cold without his body against me. "You can open your eyes now." I slowly open them and gasp at what I see before me. A quaint red farmhouse stood in a valley before me, but it had been turned into a restaurant. I could make out a few figures seated under the lighted ceiling, but it wasn't too busy. I was thankful for that; large crowds made me feel claustrophobic.

"Do you like it?" Neal asked from behind me.

I turned around and wrapped my arms around him. He seems momentarily stunned, but then he pulls me tighter against him.

"I love it," I whisper into his neck. Suddenly aware of how close we were, I try to take a step back.

"Just let me hold you a second more," he murmurs. Well I wasn't about to decline to being held by a hot guy in a meadow, so I nodded against his chest. After several more minutes he lets go.

"What happened to 'a second more?'" I tease. He blushes and rubs a hand behind his neck.

"Sorry."

"No, don't apologize," I grin. "I liked it."

"Well in that case," he grabs for me again but I dart out of the way, suddenly feeling playful.

"Come on, Biker Boy, or we'll never make it to dinner."

"Biker Boy?" He asks, grinning like an idiot.

I shrug. "I came up with it off of the top of my head. Although," I smile mischievously. "I have some other choice names for you."

"All of which are respectable, I'm sure."

"Of course," I say haughtily. "Like Dimwit, Dork, Weirdo-"

"Mind your language," he tsked.

"Nerd, Pretty Boy," I rattle on.

"You think I'm pretty?" He grins wider, flashing his dimples.

"You'll never know," I call over my shoulder as I run down the hill towards the barn. He catches up to me easily and picks me up off the ground. He trips and we both fall to the ground, laughing. My laugh gets caught in my throat as I realize I had fallen on top of him and was incredibly close to his face. His eyes reflect the stars and make him all the more handsome. Neal slowly reaches up and brushes some hair out of my face. He leans up towards me and I forget to breathe once again. _This is it,_ I think. _He's finally going to kiss me._ My eyes drift close as our lips are about to meet-

And I'm bowled over by a furry figure. I groan as I roll onto my back and look into the face of my attacker. I can't keep the grin off my face as the collie above me starts licking my face.

"Stop that," I giggle as she nuzzles my neck. I gently push her off me and laugh as her tongue darts out to lick my hand. I glance over at Neal and see him resting on his elbows, a weird look on his face. Without meaning to, I reach out and read his thoughts.

 _That's gotta be a first. The girl you were about to kiss gets snatched off of you by a dog. What, is it the PDA police or something?_

A giggle slips out at his last thought before I can stop it. His gaze shoots over to me and he raises an eyebrow.

"Uh, she keeps licking me…and it tickles," I make up an excuse as I point to the black and white border collie sitting by me. She gives a small bark as if to you, "you're full of it." I stick my tongue out at her. She jumps forward and licks it.

"Ew, gross," I sputter as she gives me a doggy grin. Neal's thunderous laugh sounds around me and I turn around to glare at him.

"Not. Funny." I grind out. It only makes him laugh harder, his hands clutching his stomach. When he finally gets his laughter under control, his eyes twinkle with tears.

"You done now?"

"Yes I am," he says as he stands and offers me a hand. He pulls me up and the collie jumps up as well, her tail wagging. She follows us as we start down the hill.

"Who do you think owns her?" I ask as she trots along behind us.

"The owners of Big Red."

"Say what?"

"Big Red. It's the name of this restaurant."

"Ohhh. They allow dogs inside?"

"It's a pretty chill place."

"Did you just call it a "pretty chill place?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Don't you start with that," I warn, shaking my finger at him.

He laughs as we step inside the cozy barn.

"How's my favorite teenager?" A waiter says as he steps up to greet us.

"I'm doing great, Wayne, how are you?" He asks warmly. It was obvious that they knew each other well. How often did Neal go to this place, anyways?

"Finer than frog hair," Wayne exclaims. I can't stop the snort of laughter from coming out at his answer. I had never heard that expression before. Unfortunately, my snort drew his attention to me. "And who is this pretty young lady?"

"I'm Lexi," I say, reaching out to shake his hand.

"Are you two out on a date?" He wriggles his eyebrows at us.

I open my mouth to reply but Neal beats me to it. "Yes we are, my kind sir. Would you please seat us by the fireplace?"

"Of course," he says with a wink. I blush and hope that the dim lights will hide it. Neal slides a glance at me and smirks so I know I didn't succeed.

"So," I say once we were seated. "How often do you come here?"

"Not very often," he says, surprising me. "Why?"

"Well, you just seem to know Wayne very well."

"That's probably because he's my cousin," he says nonchalantly.

I choke on the water I had taken a sip of. He smiles as I stop coughing and stare at him.

"Why does that surprise you so much?" He asks with a raised eyebrow.

"I don't know," I sigh. "He just looks a lot older than you."

"Yeah, well my mom is the youngest in her family and Uncle Tim- that's Wayne's dad- is the oldest by quite a large age gap. Once he was married, he and Aunt Jen had kids right away. Wayne is their oldest and my parents had me years after they married so that's why he looks older than me- he is by a good 15 years."

"Huh," I say as I stir my water with my straw. I realize I want to learn more about Neal and his family, so I ask him another serious question. "So, are you related to the dog, too?" I ask with a straight face as I gesture to the collie sitting at my feet.

Neal bursts out laughing, spewing the water he was drinking all over himself. He looks down at his shirt with a mortified look on his face, causing me to laugh too. The noise causes the collie to jump up and put her paws in my lap, making the glass of water in my hand slosh over the edges and spill all over me. Neal laughs at my expression and I glance at his soaked shirt and pants and I join in his laughter once again. So when Wayne comes over to take our orders we're clutching our stomachs and laughing too hard to say anything. He shakes his head and walks away, leaving us to wipe tears from our eyes. My cheeks hurt from smiling and my stomach aches from laughing, but as I look across the candle lit table at Neal, I know I wouldn't trade it for the world.

* * *

A/N: Next chapter will be up...probably in a couple of weeks. I have finals coming up soon but then it's summer so I should have more time to write then! If I have some spare time I will try to post the next chapter. Until then, hopefully this chapter will satisfy you. :)


	7. Chapter 6

A/N: See, that wasn't _too_ much time between updates. I think I'll be able to get another chapter up tomorrow since I don't work. Hopefully.

* * *

"I had a great time tonight," Neal tells me as he leans against the door.

"Me too," I smile up at him. The dim lighting on the porch shadows his face, highlighting his high cheekbones and chiseled jaw. Without thinking, I run my fingers over his cheek, tracing the shadows. He closes his eyes and leans into my touch. As my hand dips beneath his jaw and onto his neck, his eyes snap open and he grabs my hand. I freeze but relax again as he brings it to his lips and presses a kiss to it. Then his eyes meet mine and I shiver at the gleam in them. He licks his lips and leans closer to me. _Third time's a charm,_ I think as his lips are close to touching mine. Then suddenly the warmth of his body against mine is gone. I gasp in surprise and blink against the sudden onslaught of light. Dad's standing in the doorway, looking murderous. Neal is looking extremely sheepish as he straightens himself from falling inside the house when Dad opened the door.

"Lexi, inside _now._ "

"Dad-" I protest.

"Now!" He grinds out. I walk slowly toward the door, looking over my shoulder at Neal.

 _Sorry,_ he mouths.

I shrug and try to give him a reassuring smile. _Text me,_ I mouth over my shoulder.

He gives me a thumbs-up and I laugh. Dad glares at me and I scurry inside. Mom is sitting at the couch and reading a book- no surprise there.

"Hey sweetie! Where's Da- oh." She says as she sees my face. "Chewing Neal out, huh?"

I nod as the door slams and Dad storms in. He plops down beside Mom runs his hand down his face. Mom glances at him, then at me, then back at him. Then a wicked smile spreads over her face and she winks at me. I raise an eyebrow, unsure of what she was about to do.

"So, how was the date?"

Dad's head snaps up.

"We want to know _everything"_

"No we don't," Dad says quickly.

"Where'd he take you? Did he hold your hand? Was there a goodnight kiss-"

"And that is one of the things that we _don't_ want to know."

I smile as Mom continues to goad Dad. I sneak upstairs and before Dad notices I'm gone I snatch up my phone. I immediately send a text to Neal:

 _Sorry about my dad. I hope he didn't scare you away._

I bite my lip as I wait anxiously for his reply. Finally, my phone goes off. I grab it and flop onto my bed.

 _No problem. I hope we can continue where we left off ;)_

I giggle and respond:

 _Of course. Want to come over tomorrow?_

 _Is it safe?_

 _You scared?_

 _You insult me, woman!_

 _Sorry, I know how delicate your self-esteem is._

… _What's the supposed to mean?_

 _Nothin'_

My phone rings and I grin as Neal's name comes up.

"Hello?"

"Hi, could I talk to my insulting girlfriend?"

"That depends," I tap my lip. Something that he said catches up with me and I bolt upright. "Neal," I say slowly. "Did you just call me your girlfriend?"

There's silence at the other end of the line.

"I guess I did," he says with a nervous laugh.

"I like it. So, my boyfriend-"I pause as I hear his breath catch. "Are you too scared to come visit me tomorrow?"

"Lexi, nothing, not even scary Fathers, can keep me from you."

I smile as warmth floods through me.

"Is that so," I whisper.

"It is," he whispers back.

"Lexi!" Dad yells from downstairs; I cringe.

"Sorry, Neal, I gotta go."

"I hope I didn't get you in trouble."

"It's not your fault. I have to go face the music, but I'll see you tomorrow?"  
"Absolutely. Good night, Lexi. I really did have a great time tonight."

"I did too. It was the best night of my life."

"Lexi! Get down here, _now!_ "

 _One minute, Dad! Just let me say good-bye to Neal,_ I send him the thought.

 _You're talking to Neal?!_

Oops. Probably shouldn't have mentioned that.

 _I heard that!_

 _Dad, I'm in your head. You didn't_ _hear_ _anything._

 _Not the time to be smart with me, young lady._

 _Dad, I didn't even do anything wrong._

 _Come down here so we can talk properly._

 _Fine,_ I sigh.

"Lexi? You still there?"

"Yeah I'm here."

"Oh, you were just quiet for a really long time."

"Sorry, I was just talking to my dad."

"Huh. I didn't hear anything. I must be going deaf," he says with a laugh.

I silently curse myself at my carefreeness at mentally talking to Dad.

"Um, I really have to go now, Neal. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow."

"Me too. Text me after you talk with your Dad. I want to know you're okay."

"Okay," I roll my eyes. Realizing he can't see me I tell him, "I just rolled my eyes at you. Just so you know."

He laughs and then sighs. "I really don't want to hang up."

"Neither do I, but my dad is getting very impatient."

"Well I don't want to get you in more trouble. I'm going to hang up no-"

I beat him to it and hang up myself, grinning with satisfaction as my phone goes off and a text from Neal appears:

 _I see how it is._

I laugh and run downstairs.

* * *

"Dad," I say as he paces. "I didn't do anything wrong."

"You kissed a boy- a _human_ boy- _right in front of me!"_

"No," I say patiently. "We didn't kiss, thanks to you."

He lets out a growl. "Are you saying that if I'm not around you're going to be kissing that, _that boy!"_

 _Okay, wrong thing to say._

"Dad, we've been over this. I thought you agreed to be good about this."

"I agreed I wouldn't kill him, and I didn't, but I never said I would 'be good about this.'"

"Daemon, calm down," Mom orders. "Let Lexi talk." She grabs his hand and tugs him down to sit on the couch beside her. She slips her hand under his shirt and rubs his back. He sighs and leans against her; Mom smirks and nods her head at me. I take it as my cue to talk to Dad when he's calmed down like this.

"Dad," I say slowly. "I'm not your little girl anymore. I want to find the kind of love that you and Mom have. I think this is my chance. Neal is a really great guy. He wouldn't hurt me and he's a perfect gentleman. Besides, he'll never replace you, Daddy."

"That was beautiful," Mom says as she dabs at her wet eyes. Dad watches her anxiously and takes her into his arms.

"Please don't cry, Kat. You know how I hate that."

"These are happy tears, you oaf!" She laughs as she shoves at him.

"Now Kitten, keep your claws to yourself."

"Why you-"

Dad cuts her off with a kiss, effectively silencing her. She melts against him and snuggles closer. As I'm watching my parents, I imagine that being Neal and I someday. The thought sends warmth spiraling through me.

"So," I say a few minutes later. They keep kissing. I roll my eyes and clear my throat- loudly. Dad groans and pulls Mom even closer- if that were even possible. He slides his hands under her shirt and grips her sides. _That's it._

 _All right you two! Stop acting like teenagers and think about how you're acting_ _in front of your daughter!_ I send the thought to the two of them and take great pleasure in the surprised looks on their faces. Like I said, being an Origin has its perks. Dad shrugs and begins to pull Mom close again. I stomp my foot at their stubbornness. Time to take extreme measures. Grinning, I mentally send the nearest book between their faces. This time they both pull back when their lips meet a book. They turn to me and I shrug innocently.

"Okay Princess you have my attention. What do you need?" Dad looks a little miffed.

"Oh, I don't know. You didn't yell at me to get down here and rant about me going out with Neal. And you most definitely did not suddenly just ignore me and start making out or anything."

Mom and Dad stare at each other for a few moments then burst out laughing. I tap my foot impatiently while I wait for them to gather themselves.

"She gets her wit from you," Mom says as she wipes tears from her eyes.

"No, my Feisty Kitten, she most definitely gets it from you."

"Am I dismissed?" I interrupt them.

"Yes, my darling Lux, you are dismissed," Dad says then turns back to Mom. "Now," I hear him say as I start toward the stairs. "Let's pick up where we left off before our little daughter interrupted us," Dad's words turn into a deep growl and I run for the stairs. I most definitely did _not_ want to hear or see what they were doing in there. _Seriously. They were worse than animals doing a mating dance._ I laugh at the thought of Mom and Dad doing a mating dance like the birds I saw on Animal Planet.

* * *

I grin as I snatch up my phone from my dresser, where I had left it. I turn it on and smile wider as Neal's texts bombard the screen.

 _Worried much?_ I text him.

 _Of course. I'm always going to fret when my girlfriend's in danger._

 _It's my dad, not some monster._

 _Well I'm glad he's not a monster, otherwise my girlfriend would be half monster and only half human._

I pause as I read his text. Yeah, I'm not even _half_ human. I sigh as I think about what I'm getting into by being with Neal. I'm an Origin, not a human like he is. And humans don't know about us. And it had to stay that way…but I couldn't keep that big a secret from Neal all of our lives. _All of our lives._ I was already set on spending the rest of my life with him. Oh boy. Yeah, this was not some crush, I was in love with him. Majorly in love. Or maybe I was just a stalker. But if I told Neal, Dad would kill me. And who's to say Neal wouldn't kill me himself when he figured out what a freak I was.

 _You still there?_ My phone goes off.

 _Yeah, sorry, got distracted._

 _I hope I didn't offend you._

 _Neal, I don't get offended_ _that_ _easily._

 _So._

 _So…?_

 _So what time should I come over tomorrow?_

 _You're not scared of my dad anymore?_

 _Well you survived him, didn't you?_

 _Yeah but I'm a girl. Everyone knows girls are stronger than guys._

 _You're walking on dangerous ground._

 _I'm a dangerous girl._

 _Yes you are ;)_

I giggle to myself.

 _How about 1?_

 _One what?_

 _How about you come over at 1:00_

 _Ohhhhhh. Ya sure, that works for me!_

I yawn and glance at the clock. It was past 1 in the morning, and I wanted to get a ride in on Dove tomorrow before it got too hot.

 _I should really get to bed_

 _Yeah I should too. Lexi?_

 _What?_

 _I miss you already._

 _Wow, was our date really only a couple of hours ago? Talk about clingy._

 _I'm alright with clingy as long as it's me you're clinging to._

 _How long did it take you to come up with that line?_

 _All day._

I laugh again. I realize that I am almost always smiling or laughing around Neal, even through texting.

 _I really need to go to bed now. I have to get up early to ride Dove._

 _That's my farm girl._

 _Yeah well your farm girl needs her sleep otherwise she'll be grouchy_

 _Unlike now?_

 _Hey!_

 _Kidding. Okay, goodnight Lex._

 _Goodnight Neal. I'll see you tomorrow._

 _Counting down the hours already._

* * *

A/N: Hoped you liked it and next chapter should be up soon. Since I'm breeding my birds and my hen is coming close to laying her eggs I'm going to be spending quite a bit of time monitoring them so I can write then.


	8. Chapter 7

A/N: I've actually had these chapters written for a while, but my computer wouldn't let me post them, so I'm sorry about the wait :) Hopefully uploading 3 chapters at once will make up for it ;)

* * *

The sun filters through the blinds, painting stripes on my bed. I stretch and smile as I hear the birds chirping outside. It's one of my favorite sounds on summer mornings. I tried to talk Mom and Dad into letting me get a bird of my own, but they told me Amity would eat them. Probably true; she's a sweet cat but I wouldn't trust her near any feathered friends. I sit up straighter as I remember Neal's coming over today. I glance at my clock and have to look again to believe what I'm seeing. It's _12:00!_ Neal's coming over in an hour! I have to get ready, and tidy up, and-

"Lexi?" Mom calls from the bottom of the stairs. "You up yet?"

"Yeah!" I call back down. How did I sleep until noon? I always wake up early, and if I didn't my parents would wake me up. So why did they let me sleep in so late…

I pull on my most flattering shirt and shorts and rush to the bathroom to put on a little makeup. It takes me longer to do my hair as it refuses to stay put, so I finally pull it back into a French braid, letting some of the shorter pieces up front fall into my face. _Couldn't have it looking too neat, now could I?_ I take one last look in the mirror and rush downstairs, nearly running into Dad.

"Where's the fire?" He laughs.

"Why did you let me sleep in so late?"

"Well good morning to you too."

"Does this have to do with Neal?"

"How would you sleeping in have anything to do with Neal? He must've kept you up late last night texting you. He needs to learn to back off; my little girl needs her sleep."

I was going to accuse Dad of letting me sleep in so I wouldn't see Neal, but his answer knocks the fire right out of me.

"Sorry," I tell him as I wrap my arms around him.

"For what?" He asks as he ruffles my hair.

"For thinking you let me sleep in so I wouldn't see Neal today."

"It did cross my mind."

"Dad!" I try to pull away from him.

"Kidding, Lux, kidding."

"I am glad I got up when I did, though-"

"See, the extra sleep did you good." Dad interrupts as he turns back to the door.

"Because Neal's coming in 10 minutes."

Dad freezes and slowly turns back to me.

"Who's coming in 10 minutes?"

"Neal? You know, flowing golden locks, deep blue eyes, lips to _die for-"_

"Not helping."

"Didn't say I was trying to," I mutter.

Mom comes out of the kitchen, drying her hands on a dish towel.

"Honey, did you say Neal was coming over today?"

"Yes," I draw out the word.

"Well, um-"

"What?" I ask, suddenly anxious.

"Ashley's coming over today, too."

"Say what?"

"Your cousin?"

"Yeah I got that, but _why?"_

"Beth and Dawson are with her younger siblings camping and, well, she didn't want to go-"

"Imagine that."

Mom ignores me and continues, "So we agreed we'd spend the day with her. She's old enough to care for herself of course, but we just thought she might get a little lonely, staying by herself all day. And this is an opportunity for some family bonding time!"

"What time is she coming?"

"Around one, so any minute-"

As if on cue, the doorbell rings. I glance at the clock- it's one. I hope against hope that it's Neal and not Ashley, so I can sneak away with him before Ash sees him. If she got an eyeful of Neal…I'd never stand a chance with him after she got her claws into him. The door flies open and Ashley waltzes inside, wearing a…short, skin-tight, pink dress. Oh, and heels.

"Um, Ashley, you realize this is a farm, right? Sure it's the best place for inappropriate dresses and heels?"

"Oh Alexandra," I grit my teeth as she calls me by my full name. I _hate_ it when she does that. "You should dress fashionably everywhere you go. You could take a few pointers," she adds as she eyes my outfit with disdain.

The doorbell rings again, saving Ashley from my wrath.

I open the door and step out quickly, shutting it behind me. Neal takes a step back in surprise.

"Uh, hi," he says.

"You have to go."

"What?" I can see a sliver of hurt in his eyes.

"It's not you, it's m-"

"Oh, that classic speech-"

"Actually it's not me it's my cousin but the quicker you get out of here-"

"Oh, who's _this_ cutie?" Ashley sidles up next to Neal and sticks her hand out, flashing her pink nails. "I'm Ashley. Ashley Black."

"Uh, I'm Neal."

"Neal…?" Ash raises an expectant eyebrow.

"Hadley. Neal Hadley."

I realize I hadn't even known Neal's last name. Wow, go me! Hmm. But Lexi Hadley had a nice ring to it. _Stop!_ I chide myself. _Now is not the time to think those thoughts._

"It's nice to meet you, Neal Hadley," Ashley smiles at Neal, showing perfect white teeth.

Neal stares at her, dumbstruck, and I know I don't want to know what he's thinking about her. So, naturally his thoughts filter through to me.

 _Ashley's so beautiful. I can see the resemblance to Lexi- they both have those purple eyes. I guess Lex's eyes weren't as rare as I thought. And Ashley's much tidier than Lexi is-_

I pull away from his thoughts, ignoring the hurt.

"She isn't your girlfriend, is she?" Ashley laughs as if she made some joke.

"Uh-"

"Good! That means you're up for grabs. I want to show you around this place. This is practically my second home," Ashley rattles on as she takes Neal's arm and walks down to the woods. _Probably wants some privacy with him,_ I think bitterly. But I notice Neal's not fighting her, either. Not sure what else to do, I turn back to the house and slowly walk back up the porch. I try not to think about what Neal and Ashley are in the woods doing right now. She's probably kissing him, and I'd bet he was gladly kissing her back. So much for him wanting a farm girl. He, just like every other guy, just wanted the hot, showy girl like Ashley. Choking on a sob, I rush upstairs and slam my bedroom door. I collapse on my bed, trying to get a grip on myself. But, as the tears keep coming, I realize I truly was in love with Neal Hadley. And my heart had just broken into a million pieces when he walked away from me to go with Ashley without so much as a backward glance.

"Lexi?" Dad knocks on my door. "Can I come in?"

If he found out what Neal did, he would kill him.

I clear my throat and wipe at my eyes.

"Yeah," I tell him.

He steps into my room and sits on the edge of my bed.

"You wanna tell me why you were crying?"

"Not really."

Dad sits with me for a few moments then pulls me against him. I gladly melt into his arms and let him hold me and allow his comfort to wash over me. He just sits and lets me cry into his shoulder, sheltering me. I was never more thankful for my father than in that moment. After I feel like I've run out of tears, I sniffle and look up at Dad.

"Thank you."

"Shh, no need to thank me, Darling. I'm your dad, it's my job to protect you. You know, I did the same thing for your mother after her mom died."

"Yeah, well this isn't quite to the extent as that is."

"It doesn't matter. You're still sad, aren't you? In fact, I'd say you're heartbroken…" Dad looks carefully at me. "Weren't you and Neal going to do something today?"

"We were," I say, looking at the floor.

"So where is he, and why is my daughter crying alone her in her room!" I can tell Dad's growing very angry. He puts a finger under my chin and raises my head to look at him. "Lexi, where is he?"

"With Ashley," I choke out. "I don't know where they are, or…what they're doing." I hold back fresh tears as I imagine them flirting, hugging, kissing-

"I'm going to kill him," Dad grinds out.

"No, please Dad. I'll just wait for them to come back and…" I wasn't sure what I was going to do when they got back. Probably hide in my room.

"I'm sorry Lex," Dad tells me as he hugs me again. "I know how much you cared for him."

"I thought you'd be glad that we're not together anymore." Saying the words out loud hurt even more; it made it more real.

"I was never a fan of a boy hanging around my daughter, much less a human boy. But I saw how happy he made you, and I'd never, _ever_ want to see you hurt like this."

"Thank you," I whisper again.

"I love you, my precious Lux," Dad kisses my head.

"I love you too, Daddy."

* * *

A/N: Not to worry, I have the next two chapters ready so no waiting for the next chapter this time! :)


	9. Chapter 8

A/N: And here's the next chapter! :)

* * *

After Dad leaves my room, I stare out my window, trying to figure out what I was going to do when Neal and Ash came back. I don't want to wimp out and hide up in my room. Regardless of what happened, I still care about what Neal thinks of me. I catch sight of Dove in her paddock. But if I wasn't here to begin with…I plod down the stairs and into the living room. Mom looks at me sympathetically; I figured Dad filled her in on what happened.

"I'm sorry sweetie," she tells me as she stands up to give me a hug. I hug her tightly back then pull away. I meet Dad's eyes and smile weakly.

"I'm going for a ride," I tell them. "Need to clear my mind."

They nod in understanding and I slip out the door, breathing in the cool air. Dove must sense the mood I'm in, because she comes immediately and nuzzles me, her warm breath tickling my neck.

"Hey, girl," I whisper as I rub her in her favorite spot. I laugh a little as her lips wriggle and she gives me a horse smile. Dove never fails to brighten my day and I love her for it. I decide to ride her bareback since she's deciding to cooperate today. I brush all the mud off of her coat and slip a bit into her mouth. I take her out in the yard and lead her to the log I use for mounting. She holds still and takes off at a brisk walk once I'm settled on her back. I ride in the opposite direction that Neal went and try to push all thoughts of him from my mind, focusing on my riding. I push Dove into a trot, preparing myself for a buck, but it never comes. I sit to her trot for awhile, but when my legs burn from holding onto her, I pull her back down to a walk. I freeze as I look ahead and realize that I'd ridden to the spot where I first met Neal. _So much for not thinking about him._ I sigh and lean forward onto Dove's neck, hugging myself to her.

"Why does it hurt so much," I whisper to her. "I only knew him for a couple of days."  
Dove snorts.

"Yeah but I fell for him, hard. And I thought he had for me, too."

Dove shakes her head.

"Thanks for that, girl. Not like I need reminding." I sit back up on her and listen to the sounds of the forest. Birds chirp and flutter from tree to tree; rabbits move the underbrush; a motorcycle rumbles in the distance. _Wait, a motorcycle?_ I realize too late that it must be Neal returning home. I have just enough time to grab Dove's reins before he and his motorcycle rush up beside us. Dove spooks but I was prepared for it and am already pulling her into a circle before she can run off. She paws the ground anxiously and then rears; I have to clutch her mane to stay on. The rumbling of the motorcycle stops and Neal hops off of it, running up beside me. Dove snorts again and I rub her neck soothingly, glaring at Neal for spooking her again.

"Are you okay?" He asks worriedly.

"Why do you care?" I ask him coldly.

"Why wouldn't I care?" He seems taken aback.

"Oh, I don't know. It's not like you ditched me and spent the entire afternoon with my cousin."

"Not the _entire_ afternoon-"

I point angrily at the sky, which is turning to a deep gray with some stars poking out.

" _Yes_ , you did. And I need to get home before my parents start worrying." I turn Dove around and push my calves into her side and she takes off at a gallop. I grip with my legs to keep from bouncing on her back too much and welcome the burn of my , so maybe that wasn't the most mature way to handle it, but I couldn't stand being by him for another second. Tears stream down my face once more, but I don't have a spare hand to wipe at them. I pull Dove down to a trot once I enter my yard and stop her outside of the barn. I swing off of her and walk her inside, grabbing a few brushes along the way. I tie her and set to work brushing out her sweaty fur. I was half-hoping that Neal would follow me home; I wasn't sure why I ever thought he would after he dumped me like that. I brush Dove harder and smile weakly as she stretches her neck in pleasure.

I don't look up as I hear footsteps on the stone floor.

"I'll be inside in a few," I say. When I don't hear Mom or Dad respond, I look up. And freeze.

"Neal, what are you _doing_ here? And how did you get here? I didn't hear your _ear-piercing_ motorcycle pull up."

"I parked it in the woods a mile or so back; I didn't want to spook Dove again. And then I walked the rest of the way."

So that's why it took him so long; he followed me after all. _No, don't even go down that path._

I run my hand over Dove's coat, making sure she's dry, and then untie her. I turn her around and lead her into her stall. I smirk as Neal has to step back in order to avoid being hit by Dove's rump. I latch her stall door and gasp as I turn around and come face to face with Neal.

"Step. Back." I glare at him.

"No." He crosses his arms across his chest, his muscles flexing. I have to force my gaze away and look to his face, only to find him smirking knowingly.

This infuriates me more.

"Why do you insist on torturing me? Can't you see that you've ripped my heart into countless pieces? And then you act like you don't know why I'm hurt like this! And now you're right next to me, but I can't touch you." I swallow the lump in my throat and dare him to disagree.

"You _can_ touch me," he says as he reaches for my hand.

I spin away from him, laughing without humor. "Why can't you get this through your thick head of yours? You chose Ashley over me. I will not have anything to do with you. It…it just hurts too much." I close my eyes against the sudden onslaught of tears and turn away from him.

"Just leave, Neal," I croak. "Please."

I hear the sound of his footsteps and bite my lip against a sob. He's really leaving. I jump as I feel a hand on my arm. It spins me around and I'm surprised to find that it belongs to Neal.

"I didn't choose Ashley over you," he tells me seriously.

"Oh, really?"

"Yes, really."

"Then explain to me why you ditched our date and followed Ashley into the forest like some love-sick puppy!"

Neal opens his mouth and closes it a few times.

"That's what I thought." I pull my arm out of his grasp and march towards the door.

"Lexi, wait," Neal says as he runs up behind me and grabs my arm again.

"Let go!" I growl.

"Not until you let me explain."

"Neal, I understand that you chose Ashley over me. Just stop tormenting me and let me be," my voice cracks.

"I didn't choose Ashley-"

"Neal, I know what you were thinking about her."

"How could you possibly know that?"

I ignore his question and continue on my rant, too blinded by my anger to think straight.

"Ashley's _so_ beautiful!" I mimic Neal's voice. "I can see the resemblance to Lexi but she's _much_ tidier, and prettier, and oh!" I fake a gasp. "I guess Lexi's eyes aren't as rare as I thought! That _just makes her ordinary_!" I'm breathing heavily by the end and take pleasure in Neal's surprised face. Then what I said catches up to me and my breath stalls. _Oh no._ I just gave away that I could read minds. I start to panic. _I just endangered all of us. Maybe I can convince him that I'm just a freak who can read minds, not an Origin. I can't let him find out about Origins, or that I live in a family of Luxen._

"Lexi…" Neal takes a step away from me, his eyes wide. "You're glowing."

So much for that. I take deep breaths, attempting to control my emotions. I feel the Source bubbling up inside me, begging to be used. _Breathe in…breathe out. In…out. In…out._ Once I feel like I'm in control once more I open my eyes. Neal's staring at me, his mouth hanging open. He looks stunned, but he doesn't seem afraid. That's a start at least. I know he needs an explanation so I sigh and point to a bale of hay.

"You may want to sit down."

* * *

A/N: Kind of a short chapter, but I wanted it split up this way. Hope you enjoyed! Uploading next chapter now.


	10. Chapter 9

I decide to start out with figuring out how much he already knew.

"Have you ever heard of Luxen?"

"I heard that 20 or so years ago aliens attacked earth. I think I remember hearing someone call them Luxen- that sounds familiar. But I never believed it." He looks carefully at me. "Are _you_ a Luxen?"

"Not quite." I sigh. "Okay, this is kind of complicated, so I'm just going to start at the beginning."

I explain to him how Luxen first came to earth and assimilated, about how the D.O.D kept tabs on them. I tell about the Arum, their natural enemies. I tell him about how Dad and his family went and lived in Virginia, where he met my mom and saved her life, turning her into a Hybrid. I go on to explain Daedalus and how they were experimenting on Luxens and Hybrids, making Origins. I tell him how Mom and Dad helped take Daedalus down and then saved the world from the Luxen attack.

"So that's the summed up version of what I am," I finally tell him at the end.

"That's the _summed up_ version?" He asks in disbelief.

"I told you it was complicated."

"Yeah, no kidding."

I wait for him to start asking questions, and it doesn't take long.

"Does anyone else know about Origins? I mean, do any humans know about them?"

"Only some government officials. One of them, General Eaton, promised that after my parents helped save the world that he'd leave us alone. And he did. Neal, you can't tell _anyone_ about this. If anyone finds out-"

"They'd kill you or put you up on display at a freak show."

"You put it so eloquently," I roll my eyes. "But yes, that's about what would happen. This is why my dad's so protective of me, and why he's so slow to trust humans."

"So what are your abilities? What's the difference between you and a Luxen, or a Hybrid? I know you can read minds, but-"

"Slow down a little," I laugh. "I'll start with my abilities. I can, as you said, read minds and also speak telepathically to others."

I watch Neal's face as he seems to remember something. "That first day at your house, I was sure I heard someone in my head say, 'sorry.' Was that you?"

"Ah, yes. I'm surprised you remember that."

"What were you apologizing for?"

"Oh, you looked so terrified of Dad. I was apologizing for bringing you into a house of Aliens, and overprotective ones at that."

Neal nods, and then eagerly says, "so what else can you do?"

"The rest of my powers are very similar to Luxen and Hybrids, though the level of power varies. Everyone is generally more skilled in a certain ability, though my dad is good at everything," I say with a grin. "He's considered the most powerful Luxen. Most can move objects, speak telepathically while in Luxen form, use the Source-"

"What's the Source?" Neal interrupts.

"Um…" I try to figure out the simplest way to explain it that would make sense to Neal. "It allows us to blast stuff," I finally say.

"Awesome!" Neal grins. The Source does a whole lot more than that but I didn't feel like getting into all of that at the moment.

"A lot of Luxen can also change their shape. My aunt Dee is especially good at it- although Dad still says he's better."

"What do you mean that they can change their shape?"

"Well like Aunt Dee can turn into a wolf. Dad likes to change into my mom's fictional characters or a zombie…"

"Weird…but cool!" Neal smiles. He looks into my eyes then frowns thoughtfully. "Is Ashley an Origin too? You have the same eyes. I'm assuming purple eyes is an Origin trait?"

"Yes, generally Origins have amethyst eyes, and yes, Ashley is an Origin."

"But in order to be an Origin, a parent has to be a Hybrid, right? So one of Ashley's parents almost died?"

"Yes, Uncle Dawson saved Aunt Beth's life, which turned her into a Hybrid." I bite back my annoyance of him being interested about Ashley and her life. Which reminds me…

"So now that you know all about me," I say. "Why don't you explain to me why you left me on my front steps and spent the afternoon with my cousin."

Neal's face falls. If he thought his discovery of me being an alien would make me forget about all of that, he was wrong.

"Why don't you just look in my head?" He asks.

"Because, believe it or not, I like giving people their privacy and want to hear it for myself."

"All right. So, yes, when Ashley arrived, I thought she was pretty. Prettier than you, no. Tidier than you, yes-"

He sees the hurt in my eyes and hurries to explain.

"But I like that you're less tidy than her. She's so concerned about her looks and hair, and you aren't. That's what I mean about tidier. Not a single hair was out of place or a single nail chipped. You, on the other hand, don't care about that and I love that about you."  
My breath catches on the word and his eyes widen as he realizes what he had just said.

"So," I fight to keep my voice devoid of the emotions I was feeling. "That's all well and good but doesn't explain why you left me for her."

"She promised to show me around the place," he starts out uncomfortably. "That's why I agreed to go with her. I wanted to find a place to set up a surprise picnic for you. But it seems that my whole reasoning backfired and did the exact opposite of what I intended. I hurt you, Lexi, and I'm so, so sorry for that. I just wanted to surprise you with something nice, to show how much I care about you."

I stare at him, dumbfounded. I was so angry with him and just jumped to the conclusion that he had dumped me. I should've had more faith in him, but instead yelled at him when he was just trying to do something nice for me. A wave of guilt washes over me.

"I'm sorry I jumped to conclusions; I should have trusted you more."

"You don't have to apologize to me; I deserved being yelled at. I would gladly be yelled at more if it would make you feel better. I feel awful for hurting you, Lex."

I sniffle a little and he stands up quickly, hurrying towards me. He wraps his muscular arms around me and I bury my face in his shoulder. His embrace is comforting like Mom's and Dad's were, but it's also electrifying. It feels so good to be back in his arms again, especially when I thought I wouldn't be again. When I feel like I'm in control of my emotions once more, I start to pull back.

"Not yet," he tells me, holding me tighter. "I'm not ready to let go you." Well I wasn't about to complain, so I allow him to hold me for several minutes longer. Finally, he lets go of me and I feel suddenly cold without him against me.

"Can we agree to just put this whole thing behind us?" I ask him.

"Definitely. And just in case you were wondering, Ashley and I never did _anything_."

I _had_ been wondering about that but didn't want to ask and make it seem like I still didn't trust him. I smile gratefully at him and he smiles back.

"So," Neal says as he leans against a closed stall door. "I just have one more question for you."

"And what's that?" I raise an eyebrow.

"Does you being an Origin mean I can't kiss you?"

" _That's_ your question?" I ask in disbelief.

"I'm a guy," he says, as if that explains everything.

"The answer is no," I say breathlessly as he steps closer to me, his eyes dark.

He wraps one of his warm hands around my neck and with the other brushes hair from my eyes. I'd never been kissed before so I'm not entirely sure what to expect. Will it be extremely awkward, and the pressure uncomfortable? I find myself wondering if kissing him will be like Hollywood or my books make it out to be. My heart pounds against my chest as his breath dances over my lips. He leans down excruciatingly slowly as he closes the remaining distance between us until finally, _finally,_ his lips touch mine. I think I stop breathing. His lips are warm and soft as he presses his mouth against mine. I'm not sure what to do; I'd never been kissed before. So I stand there like an idiot, not moving at all. He pulls away and I flush in embarrassment. I could only imagine him thinking of what a bad kisser I was. Sheesh, I wasn't even a _bad_ kisser; I didn't kiss at all. I slowly raise my eyes, afraid of what I was going to see on Neal's face. I most definitely didn't want to peek into his mind and have my fears confirmed. My heart jumps as I see the tender smile adorning his face, and I relax. He stares at me a moment longer, as if checking that I was okay with this. I smile back and his face lights up as he leans down once more. This time I relax into him and wrap my arms around him. When he deepens the kiss, I accidentally let a groan slip out. Crap. He pulls back again and smiles, laughter in his eyes. I try to glare at him, but I'm simultaneously trying not to smile so I probably ended up just making a weird face. He chuckles and runs a finger gently down my cheek. I shudder and as his eyes brighten I'm the one to lean up and kiss him this time. He stiffens in surprise, then he wraps his arms around me and pulls me against him. I can feel his heart pounding against mine and run my hand down my chest until it lands above it. It's comforting to me that he's feeling the same way as I am, and I smile against his lips as he shudders under my touch. He loosens his grip on me just enough to push me back against the wall and kisses me again, much more fiercely this time. I open my mouth for him and this time he's the one that groans. I really loved being the one that has this effect on him, and kissing him was just like it was in my books. I don't know how long we kissed, but it was definitely worth the wait.

* * *

A/N: Next chapter probably won't be up for a couple of weeks or so since I'm leaving on vacation and I don't think I'll have my laptop with me.


	11. Chapter 10

A/N: Ugh I'm debating re-reading Lux again after all the disappointing books I've been reading lately. Or, I could start another series by Jennifer L. Armentrout. Or another werewolf story, always a good bet. So many choices. I love Lux (aka I absolutely love Daemon & Kat) so much but I don't know if I want to go all the way back to before they were together...and Blake...*sigh*

OH and something AMAZING that I found out about today! Jennifer L. Arrmentrout wrote 2 extra's from Lux: _Daemon and Kat go Halloween Costume Shopping_ and _The Wedding._ Both are only a few pages long but they brought back all my love for the two characters and gave me a much-needed laugh; I had tears streaming down my face in no time! So I had to continue my beloved Lux FanFic...and then I think I'm going to grab my Kindle and break out _Obsidian_...

* * *

After the well-warranted fog that had taken over my brain during the kiss had cleared out, I have a little mental freak-out. Okay, a big one. I look at Neal, who was watching me curiously, his eyes a little wary. I couldn't blame him. After he had pulled away from the kiss, I had screeched and slapped my hands to my cheeks, startling Dove.

"Ohhhh, no," I murmur, over and over again.

"Um, Lex, are you…okay?" Neal's brow was furrowed and I might've dwelt on the fact that he looked absolutely adorable had I not been so distressed.

"Crap. Crap, crappity, crap."

"That's a lot of 'craps,'" Neal muses.

"You have no idea."

"So, do you want to tell me what's got you all freaked out? Am I that bad a kisser?" He adds with a grin.

I can't smile back. All I can do is imagine my parents' faces when I tell them that Neal knows the truth about us. I just hope Dad wouldn't blow something up or 'accidentally' kill Neal. I know that Dad still has a fierce desire to protect Mom and I- understandable after everything that had happened to them-but sometimes he could be _way_ overprotective with me. But Dad truly was getting better at not strangling every guy that looked at me…mostly. I just didn't know how he would handle finding out that Neal now knew the truth after he had supposedly abandoned me…and then that we kissed. I might just leave that last fact out.

"Earth to Lexi?" Neal waves a hand in front of my eyes.

"Yea-huh?" I never was the most eloquent speaker, especially under stress.

Neal smiles, his eyes crinkling.

"What are you freaking out about?"

"Um, well, uh-"

"Do you need help thinking of any other filler words?"

"I'm good thanks," I narrow my eyes at him.

Neal laughs and wraps an arm around me. I relax into him and sigh, trying to let go of my worry.

"I'm just worried about how my parents are going to react when…"

"When they find out I know the truth?"

I nod. "I think Mom'll take it better than Dad. Like I said, he's really protective of our family."

"Then I'll just have to charm him to like me."

I burst out laughing.

"Sorry," I say to Neal's dejected face. "But good luck with that. My dad created charm. Or so Mom says."

"Well, I think every wife thinks that of their husband."

I smile, shaking my head. "Dad's a special case."

"Well, I guess we have a bet then."

"What?"

"You say I can't charm your father; I say I can. Do we have a bet?"

I eye his outstretched hand. "What does the winner get?"

"Twenty bucks."

"Twenty only?"

"Fine, fifty. Do we have a deal?"

"You're on," I say as I shake his hand. I was so going to win this bet. I could already envision the new books I was going to buy with that money.

* * *

"Mom? Dad?" I cautiously peek my head inside the door; I wanted everything to be G-rated when Neal walked in.

"Yeah?" Mom calls from the living room.

 _Is Dad in there with you?_ I send the thought to her.

 _No, he's taking a shower._

Part of me feels relieved that I would only have to face Mom. But Dad would have to find out sooner or later, and it would be better to tell both of them at once- get it over with; rip it off like a Band-Aid.

"Why are we standing outside the door?" Neal whispers conspiringly in my ear, his breath warm. "Are you chickening out of our bet?" I know Neal was trying to get me to relax, to which I was immensely grateful.

"No, I'm just giving you time to back out now. It's your last chance to keep those fifty dollars."

Neal scoffs. "All I'm hearing are empty words, my girl. Empty words."

"Then let's go in."

"That's what I've been trying to say all-"

I grab his hand and yank him inside after me.

"-along," he finishes. "What was that for?"

"What was what for?" I bat my eyes innocently.

He chuckles, sending shivers through me. "You know what I'm talking about." He takes a step toward me and I take one back. He continues to stalk me until I bump into the wall and jump forward in surprise- straight into his arms. He laughs as I tumble into him, bouncing off of his rock-hard chest. He catches me before I fall on my butt and wraps his arms around me before I pull away.

"Neal-let-go-of-me," each word was punctuated by a feeble shove against his chest.

"Why?"

"Because this is supposed to be about charming my parents and if they walk in and see us like this-"

"We're only hugging. It could be worse. Want me to show you?"

"Neal! This is _so_ not the time for that!"

"It's always the time for that," Neal smirks as he spots the rosy blush on my cheeks.

"You're enjoying this way too much, buddy." I poke him in the chest, trying to ignore the feel of his muscles against me.

He smiles a heart-stopping smile and leans in close to me, his breath playing over my lips.

"That's no way to treat your boyfriend, Lux."

I ignore the part of me that screams, _He called himself my boyfriend!_ and narrow my eyes.

"You may want to put some distance between my lips and yours, pal, before…before," my voice falters as his eyes darken and the smoldering look he gives me wipes my mind of anything I was going to say. At the mention of the word _lips_ , the logical part of his brain seemed to have shut off. Joy. I try not to focus on how gorgeous his eyes are this close up, or how good his lips felt on mine, or how he carries the faint smell of horse on him from the barn. I try to remember to breath and it takes all of my self-control to not close the distance between us. Since I seem to have forgotten how to talk, I use another means of communication.

 _Neal, if you value your limbs, you should back away from me. Right now._

Neal jumps in surprise, letting go of me. I smirk as I reach out and close his mouth; it was always nice to be on the other end of these things.

"Did-did you threaten me?" He asks once his eyes come back into focus.

"Well, it wasn't so much of a threat as that's what's going to happen if my dad found us like that."

"Is it always going to have to be like that around your dad?" Neal looks mournful and I smile despite myself.

"Is there a problem with that?"

"Well, it's just that-"

"Lexi," Mom calls. "Are you going to come into the living room or do I have to go out there and drag you in."

"That would be my mother calling," I say sweetly and dash into the living room with Neal in tow. By the time I've settled him on the opposite end of the couch from me, he looks like he had gotten into a battle with a hairdryer and lost; it was completely adorable.

Mom looks from me to Neal, her sharp gray eyes narrowed.

 _Why is Neal here?_ She projects the thought and looks expectantly at me. _I thought he-_

 _Well, it wasn't as it seemed. Big surprise, right? Turns out he didn't dump me and actually likes me- a lot- and he was all cute and endearing and, well, then we sorta kissed-_

Mom nods her head seriously. _Furious at attractive guy one second and kissing him the next. It happens to the best of us._

A laugh bursts out at me; I had such a cool Mom. I didn't even need to ask to know she was talking about her and Dad's first kiss. Her eyes go a little glazed and I know she's lost in memories, and, judging by the flush spreading over her cheeks, ones I didn't want to know about.

I glance at Neal, who's watching Mom and I in rapt attention.

 _What?_ I raise an eyebrow.

"I was just watching you two communicate. You know," he taps the side of his head, "in here. It was really cool."

"Yeah, well we can communicate that way too, you know."

"I don't know how."

"Just project the thought."

"You make it sound so simple."

"It is."

"For you, maybe."

"Are you going to argue or try it?"

"Fine," he sighs, but his eyes are twinkling.

 _How's this?_ He looks so self-conscious and I grin.

 _Not too shabby._

 _Cool. This is like-_

I never found out what it was like because Dad chose that moment to stroll into the living room, shirtless- no surprise there. Most of my early memories with him featured him shirtless. His eyes go straight to Mom, who's jaw had dropped and was staring at him all gooey-eyed. I mentally roll my eyes. They'd been married something like 20 years- depending on which wedding you went on-and Mom still melted into a puddle when she saw Dad shirtless. I hoped Neal and I were still like that someday.

Dad smirks at the look on Mom's face and sweeps into the room, but freezes when he sees Neal. His green eyes narrow to slits as he glares at Neal, a muscle throbbing in his jaw.

 _Dad-_

 _Who does he think he is? He just dumped my daughter and now he's sitting in our house, our living room,_ _on our couch?!_

 _Dad was losing it-fast._

 _Well, turns out he didn't dump me and we made up-_

 _And how exactly did you 'make up'?_ Dad's eyes are so narrow now that I have no idea how he can even see out of them anymore.

 _Not the point. I have more important things to talk to you about, so please listen before you decide to kill him._

 _I'm not sure anything will change my mind. He hurt my daughter; that's all I need to know._

 _Not on purpose. It was a misunderstanding, one I'll explain later, but I have something really,_ _really_ _important to tell you._

Dad's eyes take in the earnest look on my face, gives a crisp nod and sits down right next to Mom. She snuggles up next to him and his eyes alight with satisfaction. Even though I was completely grossed-out with them 50% of the time, I had to admit that they were cute together. More than that, they were made for each other.

"So what's so important that you had to drag Nick-"

"Neal," I correct him as he scowls at me.

" _Neal,_ in here," he finishes.

"Well…" Now that the moment was here, I had lost what little confidence I had. Mom and Dad were looking at me expectantly and the words dried up in my mouth.

 _It's okay, it'll be fine._ Neal's sweet voice echoes in my head. He was right, I needed to woman-up and get this over with.

* * *

A/N:I have next chapter written just have to go through and edit it. Should be up soon...depending on when I find my kindle and can pick up my beloved _Obsidian._


	12. Chapter 11

A/N: Well, I found my Kindle but it was dead so I figured I'd post this while it was charging :)

* * *

Mom and Dad gape at me for several long moments, then Mom breaks the silence.

"Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later if you were going to be with him."

I smile gratefully at her and she winks. Dad's mouth works; it's never a good sign when he was struck speechless. That only happened when he was really shocked or extremely mad; for me, it was normally the latter.

 _Please don't kill me._

 _It's not you that you have to worry about._

 _Well, please don't kill Neal either._

 _What if I just fried him a little?_

 _Dad!_

 _Fine, no frying, but a little jolt wouldn't hurt him…much._

I was still trying to work out if he was joking or not when he gave a deep sigh.

"Well it's been a crazy day," he says finally. "I guess I can't say I'm surprised that this is how it came to end. It always seems to work that way." Dad turns to Neal and says, "I would've been less shocked, I think, if you hadn't apparently dumped my daughter earlier today. And if you two are going to-" Dad looks like he's tasted something foul as he continues, " _be together_ , then I guess you should know the truth," Dad finishes with a grimace and has Mom immediately fawning over him.

I stare at him for several moments.

 _Who are you and what have you done to my father?_

 _This is me accepting that you're not my little girl anymore and that you can make your own choices. I trust you._ his voice whispers gently in my mind.

 _Thanks, Daddy,_ I smile at him, blinking back sudden tears. Sheesh, I seemed to be crying a lot lately.

He smiles back and turns to Neal and says so sternly that he jumps a couple of inches into the air: "But make no mistake that if you tell _anyone_ I will track you down and make you wish you were never born." Dad's voice had continued to rise as he spoke, so that by the end it was booming into the still room. He was also glowing, which I'm sure he did on purpose to add to the effect. Dad always did like to put on a show.

"Um, okay," Neal was shaking and I bit back a laugh.

 _How's that 'charming my dad' thing going?_

Neal shoots me a dirty look before turning back to face my dad warily.

"I appreciate it, Mr. Black. And I would never do anything to put Lexi in danger," he wraps an arm around me and Dad's eyes narrow. Neal snatches it back quickly and I do laugh this time. It reminded me strangely of seeing our horses interact in the paddock. Dad's horse, Apollo, was the dominant one in the herd (no surprise there) and one little look from him would send the other horses scurrying.

"So," I can tell Dad enjoys seeing Neal uncomfortable and presses his advantage. "If you are going to continue this relationship and _do_ have good intentions with my daughter, I can only assume you'll marry her someday." Neal squirms uncomfortably under his gaze. "Have you given any thought to what your kids will look like- what with an Origin and a human parent? I mean I'm not worried about Lexi passing down her genes- she inherited Kat and I's good looks."

"That she did," Neal says dreamily as his gaze rakes over me.

 _Wrong thing to say,_ I tell him as Dad's face hardens.

"Well," Neal says as he turns his attention back to Dad. "I don't know what our kids are going to look like. I'm sure someday we'll find out. But in the mean time, I think kissing will do nicely. Lots and lots of kissing," he says as wriggles his eyebrows at me. My jaw drops and a hot blush sweeps over me. Dad looks like he's about ready to have steam coming out of his ears. Mom looks- well she was still staring at Dad.

 _You're really racking up the brownie points with him, aren't you?_ I say to Neal, who was staring, petrified, at Dad as he clenched his fists. A flash of light crackles over his knuckles.

"Daemon," Mom grabs his hand as he pushes off the couch, a murderous expression on his face. "He sounds just like you do. You can't injure him for that."

"Yeah, but I make it sound better," Dad says petulantly.

Mom laughs and Dad's eyes brighten. "You never change."

"And you love that about me."

"Yeah, I do. I most definitely-"

While I was grateful for Mom stepping in and very well saving Neal's life, I wanted to stop their flirting train before it went full speed ahead.

"So I was thinking for my birthday we could have a chocolate cake with chocolate icing, and maybe chocolate sprinkles." Yeah, it wasn't the most graceful subject change but all my brainpower had already been used up for the day.

"That's a lot of chocolate," Dad raises an eyebrow and Mom ogles at him, her eyes locked on his face. I can tell Dad notices her staring, because he puffs out his chest a little and rubs a hand behind his neck, causing his biceps to flex. It reminds me of a peacock strutting around to impress his mate.

"When's your birthday?" Neal draws my stare from my parents, who were now gazing intently at each other.

"Oh, next week."

"I didn't know that."

I smile, "Well now you do."

"How old are you turning?"

"Sixteen."

"Whoa. You're a young'un," he laughs. "Just kidding," he adds as I glare at him.

"Well, then how old are _you_?"

"Indeed," Dad looks him eagerly. "Are you too old for my daughter?"

"Nope. I'm only seventeen. Unless a year is considered too old?"

"Well if you're seventeen now and she's only just turning sixteen then I'd say you're closer to a year and a half. At least."

"Daemon likes to show off his math skills," Mom says as she stands up beside him.

Dad stares at her, not sure what to make of her comment, then laughs heartily.

"There's my Kitten," he leans down and kisses Mom soundly on the mouth. It sounds like Mom's purring as Dad fists a hand in her hair. I grab Neal's hand and sneak out of the room before things progress any further. They may be cute- and made for each other- but no teenage girl wanted to watch her parents make out.

* * *

A/N: I think this FanFiction is coming to a close. It's been a lot of fun to write, but I still have so many other FanFics I want to write on some of my other Fandoms. Granted, Lux is probably my favorite series- right up there with TID and TMI, but I do want to experiment with other characters from other books :) I'm thinking I'll do an Epilogue and call it good. Unless someone has a request for me to add to this...


	13. Epilogue

A/N: Hey guys! So sorry it's been so long since I've updated. I've been crazy busy with school and homework. And then my free time is dedicated to selling my art, training my horse, and reading. I finished reading The Covenant series, also by Jennifer L. Armentrout, and, unsurprisingly, I loved it! I'm planning on writing a FanFic about it in the near future. I thought it was funny that the main character's full name, Alexandria, is shortened to Alex, though sometimes she's called Lexie. I just thought it was interesting that JLA had already written a series where her character's nickname is Lexie (Even though her mom's the only one who calls her that...) and I have the same thing with this FanFic. Also while I've been gone I reread the entire Lux series as well as some other books. However, I'm taking a brief break from books so that I can actually _write_ about my beloved books on here :) But I highly recommend reading the Covenant series!

Okay, so I decided that this is going to be my last chapter for this FanFic. I thought I should give you all a little surprise, though. In this chapter I formatted it a little differently. I have a short POV from all 4 characters. I thought it fitting since this story started with Katy and Daemon so it should end with them too. Enjoy :)

* * *

 ********4 years later*************

 **{Lexi}**

I bite my lip as I walk down the aisle, my dress swishing around my ankles. The silky material dances and flashes in the sun. The pearls along the bodice wink at me as I glance down to make sure I'm not getting any dirt on the pure white color. This day was happening; it was actually happening. Dad's arm is warm around mine as we walk down the seemingly endless journey into the woods, where the altar- and Neal- waits. We had decided to get married on our property, since both of us loved the outdoors so much. Not to mention it was a very beautiful, private place that held a lot of memories. Over the years Neal had become a common fixture on our property and had wormed his way into the hearts of my family. Even Dad, though he would never admit it. I smile as we pass the barn and Dove looks at me forlornly. I had considered having her in the ceremony, however ridiculous it would look, but she would've eaten the gorgeous flowers we had so meticulously set up. And a horse in a wedding ceremony was unheard of, but she was my special girl. After all, she played a major role in bringing Neal and I together in the first place. Neal had also discovered an affinity for horses, which was a good thing because I was planning on having lots and lots of horses on the farm we had bought together. It was quickly becoming a family tradition to own a farm, it seemed. But it was a good place to hide away; even though the huge alien secret was brought out years ago, there were still many hostile people in the public. And who knew what Neal and I's kids would look like or be able to do. We would be safely hidden with our own little patch of heaven. A patch of heaven that was thankfully within a 10 minute ride of my parent's place. Even though Neal and I wanted our independence, I still wanted to be close by to my parents. And I wanted to make sure my future kids would grow up with their grandparents nearby. I snicker to myself as I imagine Dad as a grandpa. And then I imagine Neal as a father. A flutter starts in my stomach as I think of the new life waiting for me-a life that gets closer with each step I take.

After the ceremony, the plan was for Neal and I to ride off together into the sunset. Yeah, the cheesiest, most cliché thing ever but I was looking forward to it. And so was he. Dad squeezes my arm and I look up at him. He gives me an encouraging smile and kisses my cheek.

"I can't believe I'm walking my Origin daughter down the aisle to get married to a human. I can honestly say that I had never, ever thought I would be in this situation," he whispers in my ear. I smile so widely I think my face is going to split. It was only fitting for Dad to be the one to walk me down the aisle. He was and is always there for me, and one of the two most important men in my life.

"I love you so much," I whisper around the lump in my throat. Dad makes a noise in his throat as he wraps his arms around me and squeezes me to his chest.

"I love you, my little Lux." Dad holds me to him a second more before letting go. "Now come on, people are going to start worrying I kidnapped you to prevent this marriage," he says with a wink.

I laugh as he pulls me along, but stop as I spot the chairs that seat all of my friends and family, though the words were pretty much exchangeable since all of my friends _were_ my family. All of my relatives and Neal's- my new extended family. The lanterns that were lit beforehand give off a circle of light as I pass them and each step forward brings me one step closer to Neal. He stands by the altar woven from branches and leaves. The tux contrasts with his deeply tanned skin and brings out the deep blue in his eyes. I blink back the sudden tears that threaten to spill. Aunt Dee would be so mad if I ruin the makeup she so meticulously put on me. I glance at her and she winks at me as she snuggles into Archer's side.

 _Your mother had the same problem on her wedding day,_ she tells me with a smile.

I grin back and look over to my mom. Apparently she was also going to have that same problem on her daughter's wedding day. Mom gives me a watery smile as she dabs at her eyes, wiping away the streams of mascara. Dad slows his walk a little as we pass her and I smile. Even after all these years he's so protective of her. Dad especially hated not being by mom's side when she was crying, even if they were happy tears. Honestly, he didn't want to be away from her at all and would take any excuse he could get. I'm pretty sure he's also slowing his walk to make sure Mom gets a good view of him in his tux. I fight the urge to roll my eyes but the breath flees from my lungs when I look up again and spot Neal. I'm so close to him-closer than I thought-just a few more steps and I'll be standing in front of him. He smiles at me, his eyes radiating with his love and excitement.

* * *

 **{Neal}**

The moment I first saw Lexi my heart stopped. The dress was gorgeous but not as gorgeous as the girl wearing it. She was biting her lush lips, her cheeks rosy and eyes shimmering with unshed tears. And she was mine. When her lashes sweep up and her eyes meet mine, I smile. If it's possible, she becomes even more beautiful when she smiles back, her skin crinkling around her stunning eyes. I honor a quick moment to acknowledge that her hair is artfully arranged and probably took forever to do, but all I can think about is that in a few mere moments we will be man and wife. My heart jumps and I fidget with the edges of my tux.

 _You okay big-man?_ Lexi's sweet voice tickles my mind. I will never grow tired of hearing her voice, either in my head or spoken. Over the years, it has become as natural as breathing to thing to talk to her through the connection and to just be with her, really. The day we met feels like so long ago, but at the same time just a breath away. Me on my motorcycle and her on her mare. We had once argued what was a better: horses or motorcycles. She won that argument in a matter of minutes, though part of it had to do that I was distracted by the proximity in which she was sitting by me. I thought her dad was going to have an aneurism when he walked into the room to find Lexi practically in my lap. My lips twitch at the memory and look back at Lex.

 _I couldn't be better. You look beautiful._

 _You too._

 _Uh, thanks?_ I laugh and she blushes. Her dad's eyes narrow on us, though I can tell he's fighting a smile. He slides his gaze discreetly to Mrs. Black and she smiles warmly back at him. My heart twists; I hope Lexi and I will still be looking at each other like that in 20 years as well. When my gaze focuses back on Lex, a surety washes over me. We would, I'm positive at that. I vaguely notice her dad letting her go and then she's in front of me and that's all I care about. Her hands fit in mine perfectly and I catch a whiff of her sweet, coconut smell. I'm suddenly unsure if I'll make it until the end of the ceremony before kissing her. Lex must see something in my gaze because she blushes and bites her lip, drawing my gaze. So not helping.

 _Behave,_ she tells me with a raised brow.

I grin as I send back, _no promises._

She doesn't have time to respond before the minister begins the words that will be the start of a new life. A new life with the girl of my dreams and the freedom I always wanted.

* * *

 **{Daemon}**

It was very hard to let my little girl go. But, however much it pained me to admit it, she was in good hands. Though I'd prefer it if the owner of said hands wasn't looking at her like he wanted to devour her. But…I glance at Kat and smirk. Yeah, I could understand the look. My Kitten was currently leaning against me, dabbing at her eyes. I wrap an arm around her and play with the hair that had fallen loose from her artful bun.

She gives me a watery smile and whispers, "did you ever think we'd be here?" No. Nope. Not in the slightest. I give her a squeeze and turn my gaze back to Lexi and Neal. It was impossible to mistake the love shining in both of their eyes. It's the same love I see in Kat's eyes when she looks at me. Which, thankfully, is quite a lot. And I know it's the same love she sees in mine when I look at her. Which is also a lot. I smile to myself as I realize we probably still look like lovestruck teens. Now we were lovestruck middle-aged adults, though I'm happy to say we aged well. Especially Kat- if anything she's grown more beautiful since the day I first saw her. I press a kiss to the side of her head and she glances up at me, a grin pulling at her soft lips.

"What was that for?" She whispers conspiringly.

"Because I felt like it," I whisper back. And, because I apparently can't control myself, I press a hard kiss to her lips. I pull back and smile when I see her expression. Her gray eyes were wide with shock, definite pleasure, and the tiniest bit of anger. I give it a 50/50 chance of her claws coming it. Aaaaaaand the claws win. She smacks me with her hand and whisper-yells, "This is our daughter's wedding. We're not the ones who should be kissing."

Yeah, she had a point but I wasn't known for my self-control when it came to her. I force myself to face forward and content myself by running a thumb over her hand. I smile when Lexi's barely able to get the two famous words out between her tears. Neal brushes the tears away from her face and repeats the phrase. I hear a sniffle beside me and notice the tears streaking down Kat's face. I still can't stand it when Kat cries so I run my thumb lovingly down her face, wiping away the tears. She smiles and motions for me to face forward again. I turn just in time to see Lexi and Neal's mouths come together. I watch as they stay pressed together for 3 second, 5 seconds, 7 seconds, 10 seconds... _okay._ He does not need to kiss her for that long. They have to come up for air sometime. Apparently Neal was amazing at holding his breath. Granted, I didn't even need air but Neal was human.

"He doesn't need to kiss her for that long," I grumble under my breath.

"It's a wedding Daemon. And you kissed me for a lot longer than that. At least Neal waited until the Minister gave him permission to kiss Lex. You didn't _and_ you snuck in and kissed me _before_ the wedding. Remember?" How could I forget? Dee nearly had a hernia. And Kat…I smile down at her and she melts under my gaze. I wink and her adorable nose wrinkles. I hear a whoop and realize Neal and Lexi had finally un-molded their mouths. Thank goodness. _Though I can't really blame them,_ I think as I lean down to kiss Kat once more.

* * *

 **{Katy}**

The reception's absolutely beautiful. I'm so happy everything came together like Lexi wanted. And I'm especially happy that it's time to dance. Daemon presses me closer to him, if it were even possible. I let out a squeak as his hand drifts a little too low and smack him-again-when he smirks.

"You're my wife, I'm allowed to do that."

"Just because you're allowed to doesn't mean you should in public!"

He presses a sweet kiss against my lip when I open my mouth to protest again. When he pulls back, his eyes are a heated green. The trees around us pale in comparison to the vibrance of them. I close my eyes and allow myself to swim in the warmth of his love and, well, his general warmth. It was cooling off and he was like a natural body heater; he was always hot. I snort to myself as I imagine his reaction if I told him that.

"What are you thinking, Kitten?" Daemon whispers in my ear then presses his lips to my neck. My pulse jumps and I feel his lips curve up.

"Oh, behave yourself," I snap, though there's no real heat behind my words. Daemon leans forward again and his breath dances over my lips as he whispers, "I don't think you mean that."

He pulls back and looks like he's about to do something even more reckless so I spin, wink at him over my shoulder, and run over to Dee. I giggle when I glance back and see the look on his face. Yeah, I still felt like a little school girl.

"What's going on between you two?" Dee asks as her youngest, Adam, tugs on her dress. "One second." She doesn't need to bend over very far to be at eye level with him- even at age 10 Adam was rocking the alien height.

"Can I go ride horse with Uncle Dawson?" Adam asks pleadingly.

"Yes, just be-" Dee's able to make out before Adam happily scurries off. Dee rolls her eyes as she turns back to me.

"He inherited my attention span. I'm just glad I'm not in charge of watching all these little ones." I laugh in agreement. The reception had already been going on for several hours and the younger kids were quickly tiring. It had fallen on Dawson to be the babysitter, though he wasn't complaining. I smile as he walks off toward the stable, followed by a stream of kids. He was like the pied piper. I jump about a foot in the air when I feel arms wrap around me from behind.

"Did you think I'd let you get away from me?" Daemon's sultry voice warms my neck.

"Not really. I just thought I'd make you work for me a little bit."

Daemon raises a brow. "If that's your definition of playing hard to get you're fail-"

"Did you see where Neal and Lexi went? I haven't seen them for a while."

His eyes darken and I grin. Score. Dee catches on and adds, "I thought I saw them disappear into the woods. The _dark_ woods." Daemon tenses and I can tell he's fighting running into the woods and lighting it up to find the two missing lovebirds. But then he catches my eye and suddenly smiles as the tension leaks out of him.

He leans down and kisses me for the fill-in-the-blankth time that day. Not that I was complaining.

"I see what you were doing there. Thinking you could distract me and sneak away again huh?" Dang it, busted. "And even if," he punctuates each word with a quick peck, "there is some truth to your words, I'd rather stay here with my beautiful wife."

I smile up at him. "You are something, Daemon Black, you know that?

"I do, actually."

I shake my head and he nuzzles me. I hear hoofbeats and look up to the hill. I can make out two forms on horseback. I smile as I recognize them as Lexi and Neal. There my little girl was, riding off into the sunset like a princess with her fairytale prince beside her. I just know the two are going to be as happy as Daemon and I are. He presses a kiss to my cheek as he catches my gaze.

"Our little girl has grown up."

"She has. We could be grandparents in a few years."

Daemon's brow furrows. "I'd rather not think about that at the moment. Because if they have kids, that means…" His lips turn down in a frown and I laugh, positive I can't be any happier. I snuggle closer to Daemon as I watch my daughter and son-in-law's forms disappear.

* * *

A/N: I'm going to miss writing this story, but like I said I'm going to start a FanFic with Aiden and Alex from the Covenant. The two remind me a lot of Daemon and Kat. I'm also going to try to wrap up my other FanFics- The Lunar Chronicles especially. Idk what I'm going to do with Harry Potter. But anyway, hope you enjoyed reading this; I sure enjoyed writing it!


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